Everything I Own
by GCatsPjs
Summary: Third in the 'It Came Upon a Midnight Clear' series. Follows 'Driving Sideways' AU Mer/Der (Previously known as Handprints)
1. Over the River and Through The Woods

**EVERYTHING I OWN**

 **This is third in a series.**

 **1\. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear**

 **2\. Driving Sideways**

 **AU Mer Der**

 **This fic takes place about 15 years after Driving Sideways (enjoy... and don't forget that I like comments ;) )**

* * *

The blue-silver corvette sped effortlessly down the wet street, the salt and water from the road splashing up onto the sides as the driver made his way to his destination. There was no hurry, but there was a schedule to keep if he wanted to make it to his grandmother's house around the same time as his parents. He slowed his speed as he entered the town, the small town where his brother's private school was located, a junior in high school, it seemed like it was only yesterday that he and his brother were running through his grandmother's hospital causing trouble and raising a ruckus.

He pulled into the long driveway of the school, down the tree lined street as he made his way toward the square where his brother would be waiting. He rolled his eyes as he approached the throng of people walking and talking, hanging out on the sidewalk as he watched a dirty blonde headed young man shoving a laughing red-headed girl as she and tried to push him back as she laughed harder. His feet were sliding across the ground as he reached out and grabbed a handful of snow.

"No!" She screamed as she ducked. "Greyson! Don't you dare!" She squealed as he grabbed hold of her coat with his free hand and swung his other hand around, dropping the ball of snow onto her head as she shouted at him playfully. "I'm going to kill you!" She screamed as he turned and ran for his bags as she ran after him.

"There's my brother! Gotta go!" He exclaimed as she tried to catch up with him as he swung his backpack onto his back and grabbed his suitcase as he practically slid into Richie's car, slamming into the side of it as she ran into him.

"Hey! Watch the car!" Richie exclaimed as he rolled down the window and watched his brother wrap his arms around the girl for a moment as he talked to her. "Grey… let's go!" Richie called him again.

"Okay." Greyson said as he smiled at the girl as she stopped hugging him as he picked the snow crystals from her hair.

"Alright…" She said with a smile. "Have a nice Christmas with your family."

"I will…" Greyson said as he opened the door and ignored his brother's impatient expression. He pushed the seat forward and tossed his suitcase and bag in the back. "Say hey to your folks for me." He said as she peeked in the window at Richie and smiled.

"I will." She said as he climbed in the car and closed the door. He stuck his head out of the open window as he leaned forward. She smiled and kissed his cheek. "Say hi to yours… Hey, Richie…"

"Hey, Ange." Richie said as he started to close the window on his brother.

"Hey, hey hey!" Greyson exclaimed as he sat back hard in the car as he smiled at his girlfriend as she giggled.

"Shut up… we have to go…" Richie said as they waved one more time as she stepped backwards onto the curb, and the two brothers were on their way, driving slowly down the long driveway once again, as a light snowfall began.

* * *

"Into the car, into the car… come on, let's go…" Derek said as he ushered his daughter and wife out the door and toward the waiting car.

"Dad, stop being so pushy…" Mariellis sighed as she shook her head and leaned up to kiss his cheek as he accepted the kiss and ushered her further down the sidewalk.

"I'm not being pushy… I'm trying to keep things moving… we have to pick up GG and Mark and Cris and Mik…"

"He just doesn't want your brothers to get there first, sweetheart." Meredith said with a laugh as she passed her husband on the sidewalk and kissed him on the cheek as he reached out around her and opened the door for her.

"Hush, you…" Derek said with a sly smile as Meredith kissed his cheek one more time before climbing into the car. He closed the door and opened it for his daughter, who climbed into the back seat.

"How are you going to fit everyone in here?" She asked her mother as she looked into the seat farthest back in the SUV to see several gifts on the seat.

"We'll all squeeze in…" Meredith said as Derek got into the car and started it up. He pulled slowly out of the driveway as he looked behind him, his daughter glancing behind them as they rolled.

"Daddy, be careful!" She exclaimed as a car swerved around the corner nearly slamming into the back end of their car as it stuck out of the driveway, tires squealing as they fishtailed down the road. Derek slammed on his brakes hard, the car stopping abruptly as he sighed and closed his eyes for a second as Meredith reached her hand to touch his leg.

"Are you alright?" She whispered as she glanced back to Mariellis, whose eyes were still wide with surprise.

"I'm alright…" She nodded. "Daddy?"

"I'll be alright." Derek said softly as he swallowed and looked in the rear view mirror. "Just as soon as my heart starts beating again…" He said as he paused for a moment longer, and then continued to back out of the driveway, as the family began their Christmas trip. "Almost had a mommy moment there…" Derek said as he recovered enough to crack a joke, laughing as Meredith smacked his leg lightly as he let out a relieved laugh.

* * *

Greyson and Richie remained quiet as their ride started. It wasn't an awkward silence, but one filled with thought and unspoken greetings. There wasn't much to say right away, and neither one wanted to be the one to start the conversation. As the silence between them grew to be slightly uncomfortable, Greyson's eyes passed to his brother. Richie's dark hair was growing long, his blue eyes were piercing and determined as he maneuvered the car over the road which was slowly covering with snow.

"Why did you take this car?" Greyson asked, staring at the worn dashboard of his brother's corvette that he had been driving since he bought it a few years earlier with their father's help, and rebuilt it with Mark's aid.

"It's my car." Richard replied as he glared at his brother, knowing that Grey enjoyed a good argument, and driving the corvette in the snow was always an arguing point with his mother, so he knew he could get on his brother's nerve if he just mentioned it. "Don't start, Greyson."

"Don't start what? It was a simple question." He shrugged.

"This ride is going to be long enough, I don't need you starting with me." Richie said as Greyson smirked and glanced out of the window.

"How is mom and dad?" Greyson asked as he tried to tread lightly.

"They're fine." Richie replied.

"Mari?"

"She's fine too… you act like you don't call home three or four times a week." Richie said as he watched Greyson roll his eyes as he turned slightly sullen. "Sorry…" Richie said softly as he sighed.

"Still taking it pretty hard, huh?" Greyson asked immediately as he looked to his brother and watched his jaw clench. He ran his hand through his thick dark curls and sighed.

"Yes." He said softly and definitively. It was obvious he didn't want to talk about it, but Greyson couldn't help but want to know more.

"Come on, man… we can talk about this…"

"I don't want to talk about it. It's done, it's over with… and there's nothing left to discuss." Richie said angrily as he glared at his brother.

"Listen… you don't have to get angry with me about it… I wasn't the one boning your girlfriend."

"Greyson, that's disgusting… would you please just… you're disgusting." Richie scoffed at his brother who was smirking at him.

"Is it the idea of me boning your girlfriend, or the idea of someone else boning your girlfriend that bothers you more?"

"Greyson! Stop it!"

"I was just wondering…" He shrugged.

They fell silent for a moment as Richie continued to drive. "I think it's the idea of you boning anything that grosses me out most." Richie quipped as he laughed, feeling his brother punch him in the shoulder. "Hey! I'm trying to drive here… you want to send us into a ditch or something? Dumbass…"

"You're disgusting…" Greyson muttered to his brother as they continued on their way.

* * *

Derek pulled up to Ellis' house and put the car into park. "Where is she? She's usually sitting on the porch waiting for us…" He muttered as he pulled his seatbelt off.

"I'll go get GG!" Mariellis exclaimed as she flung her seatbelt off and jumped out of the car, running quickly down the pathway to the front door of her grandmother's house.

Derek looked to Meredith and they exchanged a look. "That was weird." He said as he watched her swing open the door and go inside quickly.

"Yeah it was…" Meredith replied as they watched the front door. After a moment, the door opened again and Mariellis stepped out holding Ellis' bag as she talked quickly. Ellis nodded her head and talked back as they Mari held her arm out for her grandmother and helped her down the steps as they walked down the pathway. "What on earth are they talking about?"

"I have no idea." Derek said as they approached the car and Derek got out, Ellis' eyes looking up to meet his as he walked around the car. "Mom…"

"Doctor Shepherd." Ellis said with a slight smirk as he opened the door for the two of them, taking the bag from Mariellis. "You two are having quite the conversation…" He said as Mari slid into the car.

Ellis stopped for a moment and looked Derek in the eyes. She raised her eyebrows for a moment and lifted her hand to his cheek. "It kind of feels a little bit awful not being the center of attention, doesn't it, Derek?" She asked as she laughed at his eyes as they narrowed in a suspicious glance. "Don't you worry… you'll find out what Mari and I have planned soon enough." She said as Derek shook his head and held the door as Ellis turned and climbed into the seat, reaching out to close the door herself as Derek stood for a moment staring in at her as she said hello to Meredith, and she and Mariellis continued their whispered conversation.

* * *

Derek pulled the car to Cristina and Mark's house, and waited patiently. "They know we're coming to get them, right?" Derek asked.

"Geez, Derek… give them a minute." Meredith replied as she rolled her eyes and laughed slightly.

"Derek, patience is a…"

"Virtue… yes, I know… thank you, Ellis." Derek interrupted as he turned his head toward Ellis as she raised her eyebrows at him. "I'm sorry." He muttered as he watched Mari giggle.

"I was going to say…" Ellis said with an irritated growl. "Patience is as a rarity with you… you should relax more, lower your blood pressure…"

"Yeah, Daddy… take a chill pill…"

"Oh dear, I forgot my prescription pad…" Ellis nodded, listening to her granddaughter's giggle as Derek glared at Ellis in the rearview mirror.

"Remind me again why we keep you around?" Derek playfully joked as he raised his eyebrows and smirked.

"Because I'm the boss…"

"And don't you forget it!" Mari chimed in. Her head turned toward the door on the house as it opened and Mikala stepped out onto the porch and waved.

Mariellis waved back and smiled. "HEY MIK!" She exclaimed as she waved her toward the car. She was about to step off the porch when an arm reached out and grabbed her suddenly as Cristina turned her around sharply and started talking to her quickly. She handed her a couple gifts and nodded toward the car as she waved.

"She didn't have to bring gifts…" Derek said softly.

"Oh, you have no idea…" She said as Mari opened the car door for Mikala. Their eyes went back to the door as Mark stepped out, his arms full of gifts, his face hidden by the brightly wrapped packages as Cristina directed him down the steps, her hands empty but for her purse. Their bags slung over Mark's shoulder.

"I should help…" Derek said as he started to get out of the car.

"No!" Mikala said with a laugh. "Mommy said she is trying to teach him a lesson…" She said as Ellis and Mariellis took the packages from Mikala and they all watched as Mark and Cristina approached the car.

"Alright… put them in the back." Cristina said as she climbed into the car, leaving Mark on the curb.

"Cristina!" He exclaimed. "Cristina, come on… help me, please? I'm sorry… please?" Mark begged as he tried to balance the gifts. "They're going to fall!"

"Don't drop any of them Mark!" Cristina exclaimed as she sat in her seat and sighed. "Hey guys." She said with a grin.

"What are you teaching him now?" Derek asked as he reached for the latch for the back hatch as he watched Mark fumble with the gifts.

"He didn't wrap any of those gifts."

"I wrapped the gifts, Mom." Mikala said as she looked up from her conversation with Mariellis.

"See… my poor baby had to wrap all of those gifts… all by herself."

"It wasn't difficult, Mom…" Mikala said as she watched her father balancing the gifts as he tried to reach the latch. "He's going to drop them…"

"If he drops them, I am going to drop him!" Cristina exclaimed as Mark looked around the gifts and glared at her.

"I can't take it anymore…" Derek said as he climbed out of the car and ran around the back.

"What crawled up his ass and died?" Cristina asked as she glanced to the two girls as they giggled.

"He just wants to get there…" Meredith shrugged as she watched the hatch open as Derek helped Mark pack the car with the gifts and their bags.

The volume in the car had increased exponentially as Mariellis and Mikala chattered back and forth and Mark and Derek discussed this and that. Meredith remained fairly quiet, occasionally chiming in on the conversation as she kept a close eye on the road, nervously watching the snow fall as they drove. She sighed softly and stared out her window, catching the view of Derek glancing over at her.

"They're going to be fine." Derek said as he watched her turn her head slowly to meet his, tipping her head back, she gave him a slight smile.

"How do you know what I'm thinking?" She asked as she watched him give her a supportive smile.

"Because you're always thinking about two things… surgery, and the kids…" Derek teased as she gave him a half smile, and put his hand on her hand, feeling her cool fingertips on his skin, he smiled a little wider.

"And you… sometimes I think about you." She replied.

"Only on occasion." Derek winked as she laughed, bringing her hand to his lips as she smirked. The phone in her coat pocket began to ring.

"Oh! The boys!" She exclaimed with a smile as she grabbed for the phone. "Hello?" She said with a grin as she glanced back to everyone else as their conversations quieted as Meredith talked on the phone.

"Mom?" Richie said, his voice loud and projected as he tried to hear over his brother tapping on the dashboard.

"Richard?" She said loudly as she projected her voice as well. "Did you get your brother?"

"I did." Richie replied as he smiled at the sound of his mother's voice. "He's in one piece… so far…"

"Good…" Meredith laughed. "We're on our way too…" She said with a smile.

"Tell everyone we said hi…" Richie replied.

"Richie and Greyson say hi!" Meredith exclaimed to everyone else.

"HI RICHIE AND GREYSON!" Everyone in the car exclaimed as Meredith laughed and listened to Richie laugh. "How is he doing?" Meredith asked softly as she swallowed, glancing to Derek as he gave her another supportive smile.

"Looks good." Richie replied.

"Does he look like he's been eating?"

"Yes." Richie said as he tried not to look at his brother, who was staring at him as he talked to his mother.

"Richie, are you going to talk to him?" Meredith asked softly. "I think he'll talk to you… he won't talk to us about it."

"I'll do that. I'll try." He said with a sad smile.

"I'm fine, Mom!" Greyson exclaimed from beside Richie as he threw him a glare.

"Let me talk to him, please." Meredith said as Richie sighed over the line. She listened as the phone exchanged hands.

"I am fine, Mom." Greyson said into the line as he listened to his mother pause. "I am fine, I promise."

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm good… I'm doing well."

"How is Angie?"

"She's fine." Greyson sighed. "Stop worrying."

"How is the snow? Is it snowing there?"

"It's snowing here…"

"Will it be alright? You're not going to have to stop, are you? Is Richie okay driving in the snow?"

"Mom… we'll be fine… he's twenty years old and has been driving forever… the most worries you should have shouldn't be the snow… it should be the heat in this car breaking down and a rolling icicle pulling into Granny's driveway. How is everyone there?"

"Everyone is good." She said with a smile. "We're looking forward to seeing you."

"I'm looking forward to seeing you… if the snow gets bad… I promise, we'll stop somewhere, okay? Please don't worry."

"I will try not to." Meredith said with a smile as she listened to Greyson try to sound positive. "I love you, baby." She said as she swallowed hard.

"I love you, Mom…" He said softly. "We'll talk to you soon."

"See you soon." Meredith said softly as she closed the phone, and listened to the sound of everyone in the car talking swell slightly. She then realized that she had a vice grip on Derek's hand, and released it quickly as she gave him an apologetic look.

"I told you they were fine." He said as he lifted his hand to the back of her neck and rubbed it softly.

"You did." She said as she leaned into his hand. "I love you, Derek." She said softly as she leaned in to his arm and felt his arm wrap around her tightly.

"I love you too, baby…" He whispered as he kissed her head and held her as he drove through the snowy morning streets as their family and friends talked to one another behind them.


	2. To Granny's House We Go

**11:00 AM-**

The trip was fairly quiet, they took their time as they drove, the two brothers remaining quiet as the snow fell softly. As soon as Greyson had hung up the phone with his mother, he had begun to shift around in his seat. "I'm not going to talk about anything." He said up front, his eyes moving to Richie as Richie glanced to his brother.

"I'm not going to ask you anything." Richie replied. "You don't have to talk about anything you don't want to talk about."

"Good, because I don't want to talk about anything." Greyson replied.

They were silent for a little while longer as Richie slowed the car slightly as a gust of wind sent a flurry of snow cascading into the side of the car, causing a white out for a moment, the sun's glare only increasing the inability to see. "I wish the freaking snow would melt."

"The snow is nice." Greyson replied. "It's clean and pure…"

"Its slippery and cold and nasty and…" Richie muttered as he listened to his brother sigh. "Sorry…" He said softly as Greyson shook his head.

"It's fine… I'm just in a weird mood." Greyson replied.

"You seem like you're in a pretty crappy mood."

"I'm fine… just thinking a lot… see, you're doing it again." Greyson said as he glared at his brother.

"Doing what again? I'm not doing anything…"

"You're trying to get me to talk to you. I don't want to talk to anyone about it! I'm coming home to see Mom and Dad… and if one more person asks me how I'm doing, I'm going to punch them in the face. This is why I didn't want to come home… I just want things to remain in the past, and I don't want people bugging me about my goddamned fucking feelings." Greyson muttered.

"Well, you answered my question…" Richie replied.

"Shut up, Richie…" Greyson muttered.

"I think I'll just leave you to your sulking…" Richie replied as Greyson grumbled and turned his head, staring out into the snow covered landscape.

* * *

"So who is minding the hospital while half of the hospital comes on this trip to your mother's house, Derek?" Mark asked, listening to his friend chuckle.

"Ask the boss…" Derek laughed, "She's in charge of such things as making sure shifts are covered."

"Oh, I left the derelicts in charge… or was it… I left with the derelicts?" Ellis said as she smirked at Derek's smile in the rear view mirror. "Things get fuzzy around the holidays." She said as Meredith turned her head to watch the war of smirks between Ellis and her husband.

"Are you two going to be at one another's throats the entire time?" Meredith asked as Derek's smirk was now directed at her.

"Why mess with tradition?" Cristina chimed in, as everyone laughed.

"Daddy?"

"Hmm?" Derek said as he saw his daughter's face in the rear view mirror.

"Are we having an anniversary cake for you guys tonight?" She asked as she watched her father's hand go to her mother's. "You've been married for like twenty years or something, isn't there supposed to be a party?"

"We'll celebrate it the same way we always do." Derek said with a smile to his daughter. "I'm sure Granny made a cake."

"Awesome!" Mariellis said with a giggle.

"Did I remember to say happy anniversary to you today?" Meredith asked as she gave him a confused look as he gave her a serious glance. "Derek?"

"No…" He laughed, a smile spreading across his face. "Of course you didn't forget…" He grinned as she nudged him.

"You're going to get it… trying to trick me like that…" She said with a laugh as she cuddled closer to him. "I've just been a little stressed out."

"I know." He said softly as he kissed her head. "But you'll get to see your boys, and everything will be back to normal again."

"Awesome." She whispered, listening to him chuckle against her hair as he squeezed her tightly as he drove.

* * *

 _"My father, by Richard Shepherd…" Richie said as he read off the paper in front of him. He looked up at Meredith who was watching him carefully._

 _"It's a good start." She said with a giggle as Richie shook his head and laughed._

 _"Mommy, I'm supposed to interview daddy… and people who know daddy… so I can write my paper for school." He explained as Meredith nodded._

 _"Did you write down some questions?" Meredith asked, watching the dark haired little boy nod his head._

 _"Well what kind of questions do you have written down?" She asked as she leaned on the table slightly and glanced at Mariellis_ _out of the corner of her eye as she played with her dolls._

 _The nine year old boy smiled at his mother as he lifted his paper up. "How long have you known my father?" He asked, watching Meredith smile._

 _"About… twelve years…" Meredith said with laugh. "Give or take…"_

 _Richie put the paper back down and began to write, looking up to his mother as she smiled on. "Okay… um… What do you think is the best thing about him?"_

 _"The best thing about him?" Meredith said as she closed one eye and looked to the ceiling as if she were thinking really hard. "Can we skip that one?" She asked as Richie shook his head and giggled. "We can't skip that one?"_

 _"Nope." He laughed._

 _"Okay… the best thing about your daddy is… his bravery." She said with a smile._

 _"Bravery?"_

 _"Mama?" Mariellis_ _said as she stood up against the table and put her hands atop it, glancing to Meredith. "Mama, can I have some juice?"_

 _"In a minute, princess… mama is helping Richie with his homework."_

 _"I wanna_ _help!" She exclaimed as she pulled on Meredith, who lifted her into her lap._

 _"You want to help?"_

 _"Mom, she can't help… she's three… she doesn't understand what we're talking about."_

 _"She understands, Richie." Meredith confirmed. "Mari… what is your favorite part of daddy?"_

 _"His nose." She said with a giggle. "He goes 'honk, honk'" She giggled as she squeezed her nose._

 _Meredith looked to Richie who had his eyebrows raised. "I told you she wouldn't get it." Richie said as Meredith laughed. "Okay, Mom… what is the worst thing about daddy?"_

 _"The worst thing?"_

 _"Stinky breath…" Mariellis_ _said as she waved her hand in front of her nose and giggled._

 _"Mari!" Richie exclaimed. "Mom… this question is for you."_

 _"Well, your dad doesn't brush his teeth as much as…"_

 _"Mom!" Richie exclaimed as he dropped his pen._

 _"Alright, alright… worst part of your daddy… is… his impatience…" Meredith shrugged. "He doesn't take the time to just wait… he's always in a hurry, and he always thinks he's right."_

 _"That's two things." Richie said as he started to write._

 _"Nobody's perfect." Meredith shrugged with a giggle. Her head turned as the door opened. "Speak of the devil…" She said as she heard Derek speaking low to someone and the sound of two feet stomping up the stairs. Meredith stood up and walked toward the doorway as Derek walked in. "Did you get him?"_

 _"Daddy!" Mariellis_ _exclaimed as Derek lifted her into his arms and kissed her cheek._

 _"I got him… and he's going to stay up in his room until after dinner, and Richie can bring it up to him."_

 _"Derek, I think that's a little harsh."_

 _"He was expelled from first grade, Meredith… How do you get expelled from first grade, Meredith?"_

 _"My guess would be spitting at the teacher…" Meredith shrugged._

 _"Yes, after stomping on her foot… nice guess… you'd be right…"_

 _"I should go up and talk to him…" She said as she walked toward the stairs._

 _"Mer_ … _he's alright…"_

 _"No… you probably yelled at him the whole way home… I want to talk to him."_

 _"I didn't yell…" Derek said as she disappeared toward the stairs."_

 _"You talked sternly…" Richie said as he rolled his eyes and laughed as Derek gave him a smirk._

 _"Get back to your homework…"_

 _"Actually, Daddy… I have a couple questions…" Richie said as he held up his paper and smiled._

* * *

 _Meredith walked up to her son's room and knocked lightly on the door. "Greyson?" She said as she knocked again. "Grey, baby… you alright?"_

 _"No." His voice was muffled and mixed with tears as he held tightly to his pillow and Meredith stepped inside. "Go away…" He muttered angrily, not caring who was at the door._

 _"Greyson, it's mommy… talk to me."_

 _"No." He muttered, his face still buried in the pillow, his tears hot and full of anger._

 _"Grey…"_

 _"Mommy…" He muttered angrily as he pulled the pillow from his face and looked at her with a red, angry face as he let the tears roll down his cheeks. "I don't want to be here anymore. I want to die." He said as he covered his face with the pillow and rolled over, crying loudly into his blankets as Meredith sit on his bedside completely taken aback by his comment._

* * *

Greyson's tiny voice pushed through her thousand thoughts, the differences between her two sons was astounding, and the emotional baggage that her younger son toted around had been heavier than she could ever imagine. She had worked with him through school, through social programs, therapy, and sports programs, always encouraging him, always helping him do something for himself.

She felt tired as she stared into the snow covered hills they were driving through. She felt emotionally exhausted, as the more recent events with Greyson weighed on her mind. Richie was never one to have to worry about. He was responsible and smart, very sure of himself. Mariellis was quick and bright, her daddy's little girl. Greyson was different, and he always worried her more than the rest, and as the school year had begun, she thought she had made a mistake by having him go away to school, but Derek thought it would be best. He felt that their son could develop and grow physically, emotionally, and more productively if he wasn't under the constant watch of his mother.

She looked up as she felt Derek's fingers lacing through her fingers with his own, the sounds of the other passengers in the car became sharper, and Derek's facial expression was one of pure and utter concern. "I'm fine, Derek." She whispered as she felt a kick to her seat from behind her.

"Snap out of it, Mer…" Cristina's voice shook Meredith's resolve slightly and she turned her head.

"I'm just worried about the snow…" She said quickly as her eyes met Derek's, telling him a different story.

"Well, whatever you're worried about… don't be… we're here to have a good time, not to watch you go into an anxiety induced coma. Got it?" Cristina said as she and Ellis exchanged a glance.

"I…"

"Got it?" Cristina asked as she interrupted Meredith's excuse.

"Cris, I…"

"Got it?" Cristina said again, driving the point home.

"I got it…" She said with a sigh, and a slight smile. "Well… if you don't want me to worry… why don't you engage me in some conversation… you people are so dull!" Meredith exclaimed with a laugh as everyone laughed, and finally the conversation in the car involved everyone's attention.

* * *

 **2:00 PM-**

Greyson sighed as his brother drove slowly, he glanced to see Richie glance at him. "What?" Richie asked.

"This trip shouldn't be taking this long." Greyson mumbled as he felt his brother put his foot on the brake. "And it's not going to go any faster if you keep driving like a little old woman."

"Do you think you can drive better?"

"I do."

"Well then, it's too bad you don't have your license, isn't it?" Richie replied.

"Where the hell are we, anyway?" Greyson asked as he glanced out the window.

"I took a shortcut."

"A shortcut typically means it will take a shorter amount of time, Rich. This is taking us into the mountains. We need to get around the mountains."

"It's easier to go over them."

"Oh God. You're taking me out here to kill me, aren't you? Mom and Dad are finally fed up with me and they sent you out here to kill me." Greyson said as he gave his brother a frightened look. Richie knew better than to laugh, thinking his brother was joking around. This wasn't the first time that they had this conversation.

"Stop it."

"No, I mean it. You're going to bury my body out here in the woods, and mom and dad are going to report me missing. This is awful. This is really bad… really, really bad." He said as he began to tremble, his hands tapping on his leg as he tried to calm himself.

"Greyson, stop it with the paranoia bit. It gets really old, really fast… this is just a shortcut, it'll get us there faster."

"I should make some kind of mark in your car that lets people know I was here. You'll probably abandon it or something." Greyson said as he began to hyperventilate. "You'll set it on fire and abandon it, probably burn my body and…"

"Greyson. Stop it."

"No…no… come on, Richie… you love me, right? You wouldn't kill me. I'm your brother! you wouldn't."

"Greyson, Stop it!" Richie exclaimed as Greyson fell silent, the fear in his eyes was so real, his hands trembled. "Have you been taking your meds?"

"Shut up." Greyson said as he stared at his hands.

"Grey, I'm serious. If you're not taking your meds, then there is no way that I am taking you home to Mom and Dad. There is no way that I'm letting them see you like this."

"I don't need medication, Richie." He said as he glared at his brother. "I think you all need medication."

"Grey."

"You all need medication. I'm the normal one, and you just drug me up so that I won't know the difference. Well, I see it. I see the difference. Maybe you should be taking the medication…" He growled.

"Greyson!" Richie exclaimed angrily, watching Grey quickly calm as he took a deep breath and release it very slowly.

"I'm taking the goddamned medicine, alright?" He exclaimed, his fear turning to anger as he slammed his fist down on the dashboard.

"Cut it out right now, or I will leave you out here to die. Do you hear me?" His threat empty, but his anxiety high.

"I…"

"I will… I'll leave you right here in the cold… and you'll freeze to death… do you want that?"

"No."

"Then straighten out. No more shit, Greyson." Richie said as he watched Grey stare into his lap as his shoulders began to tremble and he began to cry. "Aww… man… don't cry…."

"I'm sorry…" He whimpered as he sniffled loudly. "I'm sorry, Richie… I'm sorry…" He sobbed as he felt his brother's hand on his back, as he rubbed it softly and continued to drive, and Grey tried his hardest to control his emotions, while Richie tried to do the same. "I'm sorry, Rich."

"It's alright, little brother… don't worry… we're going home…" He said softly as he held his brother tightly. "We're going home…" He whispered.

* * *

 **3:00 PM-**

Derek smiled as they turned down the street where his mother's house was, the snow was sticking and Meredith had stopped paying attention to it as the conversation in the back seat had gained in volume and excitement.

"We're almost there." Derek said with a smile as Meredith turned her head to see out of the windshield.

"Wow. There already? You made good time." Meredith said with a smile, watching his eyes glance to hers for a moment.

"I'm not going to dignify that with a joke." Derek said as he pulled into the long, winding driveway.

"Now that's a first." Ellis chimed in as Derek laughed as they pulled up the driveway. "Next thing on the agenda is to make him speechless." She said as everyone laughed.

"Ha." Derek said as he shook his head and glanced in the rear view mirror. "You're not going to get me down this Christmas, Ellis Grey."

"Shame." She said with a smile as Derek parked the car.

"Alright. We're here. Grab your bags and your selves… and get out, get out, get out…" Derek said as he watched the door to the house open. "Look at that. You're too slow. Granny is going to step out onto the porch and catch a cold!" Derek teased as the two girls leapt from the car and ran toward the house.

"Granny!" Mariellis exclaimed as she and Mikala made their way to the house.

"Granny!" Mikala exclaimed as well as she giggled and the two girls hugged the older woman as she wrapped her arms around them.

"Woah… what's all this?" Marion exclaimed as she squeezed the two girls tightly. "You guys are the first ones here…" She said with a laugh as she looked up to see Derek helping Ellis from the car.

"Can we go have some cookies?" Mariellis asked with a giggle as Marion nodded.

"Right inside…" She said as she nodded and the two girls ran into the house.

"Are you feeding them already?" Meredith asked as she stepped up the porch steps.

"Of course… I need to keep everyone fed and warm." Marion said with a smile as she held out her arms for Meredith. "Oh, Meri…" She groaned into the younger woman's hug. "How are you doing?"

"Better." Meredith nodded into her body as Marion nodded.

"Good." Marion said softly as Meredith kissed her cheek softly and stepped into the house as Cristina and Mark each climbed up the steps and each gave Marion a hug. "I'm so glad that you all could make it… everyone else is on their way…" She said as she watched Derek walk down the path with Ellis on his arm. The two of them were bickering back and forth and as they reached the porch steps, Derek let her climb them herself.

"Thank you…" She muttered to Derek as she climbed the steps and approached Marion. "You would think that I was an invalid the way that man coddles me." She said as she rolled her eyes and gave Marion a hug.

"Oh, he loves you." Marion said as she smiled to Derek and watched as he rolled his eyes and laughed as Ellis glanced his way.

"He just knows who signs the paychecks." She said as Derek nodded.

"You got that right…" He said with a laugh as Ellis walked inside. Derek stepped up the stairs and was immediately enveloped in his mother's arms. "I missed you…" He said softly as he felt her squeeze a little harder.

"I missed you." She said with a soft whisper. "Where are my boys?"

"They're on their way." Derek nodded. "They're probably three or so hours out."

"I hope they're here before dark." Marion said as she and Derek walked into the house. Suddenly, he was hit by the smell of cookies, cinnamon, and burning candles. It was a smell that could knock him off his feet and send him years into the past. He found himself breathing deeply as Marion watched him smile. "Derek?"

"They'll be here." He said as he smiled and glanced to his mother.

"And…"

"She'll be fine." Derek said softly. "She's been taking it well. She's been alright." Derek said softly as he watched the concern in his mother's face. "He's fine too, Mom."

"I want to believe you, Derek. But I can't, not until I see that face for myself."

"He's looking forward to seeing you… now tell me about these new great grandbabies that you have coming over today."

"Oh, Derek! They're getting to be so big!" She exclaimed happily as she grabbed her son's hand and led him into the living room, where everyone else was gathering.

* * *

 **3:00 PM-**

Richie drove in silence, slowing here and there as the wind blew the snow in his path. He was content driving, and after not hearing Greyson after a short time, he assumed his brother was sleeping. He had glanced at him a couple of times before, but Greyson had snapped at him for acting like a mother hen, so he decided to not look at him unless Greyson talked to him. After several minutes of silence, he assumed that his brother had fallen asleep, and his eyes passed to the passenger side.

Greyson sit in the seat, his eyes staring off into space, his mouth hanging open slightly as he seemed to be nearly sleeping with his eyes open. "Grey, you alright, man?" Richie asked his brother as he watched him continue to stare straight forward, absolutely unresponsive. "Grey…?" Richie said as he thought about touching his shoulder, to do something that would bring him back from his daydream. "Greyson!" Richie exclaimed as he reached to touch his shoulder, as suddenly, Greyson's hand reached around and his fist went full force into Richie's ribs.

The wind was knocked out of Richie's lungs, his hand jerking the wheel, sending the car sliding sideways down the road as Richie screamed out in pain. Greyson stared at his brother wide eyed as he screamed, not only for the pain in his side, but because he didn't know where the car was going to end up. Greyson didn't scream, it was as if he had no idea what was even happening as Richie closed his eyes, and the car came to a stop in the middle of the road. "Oh my fucking God!" Richie screamed. "Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!" Richie shouted as he looked back and forward, and upon seeing no cars, he slammed on the gas and felt the car slipping as he pulled it hard into a snow plow turn around that it had come to rest beside. "Holy Fucking Goddamned Fucking...!" Richie screamed as he slammed the car into park and threw his seatbelt off. He got out of the car and leaned down as he tried to catch his breath.

Between the impact of his brother's punch, and the sheer terror of sliding on the ice, Richie was a mess. He stomped back and forth holding his side as he screamed obscenities at his brother. His voice was loud and echoed through the snow covered mountains as a thick snowfall continued to sprinkle down on them, covering the road and trees around them. "Holy mother fucking goddamned piece of fucking shit! Goddamned fucking idiot! You idiot! You goddamned fucking idiot!" He screamed as he slammed his fist down on the back of the car, pulling it back quickly as he realized what he had done, relieved that he hadn't left a dent or a mark on the car's finish. "I am going to fucking kill you!" Richie screamed. He stomped over to the passenger's side of the car and noticed that Greyson still hadn't moved, he was just staring at his hand. "I am going to kill you!" Richie screamed as he breathed heavily, his face was red, his hands were cold, his breathing erratic as he stared at his brother as he stared straight ahead, his head slowly turning to face Richie, as he breathed heavily and stared angrily at his brother.

Suddenly, a look of confusion came over the younger man's face as his brow furrowed. "Shit…" Richie whispered as he realized that Greyson had no idea what had happened.

Greyson reached forward and pushed the button for the window, opening it a crack. "Rich?"

"Grey…" Richie said as he tried to catch his breath.

"Richie, why are you outside?" He asked as he swallowed hard and flexed his hand.

"I…I…"

"Did you have to take a piss or something?" Greyson asked. "Why are you just standing there?"

Richie was speechless for a second as he stared at his brother. "Yeah… Greyson… I had to take a piss…" Richie muttered as he turned sharply and stomped around the car, swinging the door open, he fell into his seat.

"Why does my hand hurt?" Greyson asked as he moved his fingers awkwardly and gave his brother a confused glance.

"Maybe it's just the cold…" Richie muttered as he closed his brother's window and put the car in drive, silently driving down the road as Greyson sit beside him, staring curiously at his hand.

* * *

 _Greyson_ _sat in daycare, staring down at his paper. He had been sitting there for several moments just staring at the page with the blue crayon poised over the paper. "Grey?" A voice said from above him as he stared down at it. "Greyson?" He didn't hear them call his name, he only focused on the paper. "Grey." The voice was a little louder, making him jump, his eyes flashing to the source of the voice as a smile came to his face. "Hey there."_

 _"Hi, mommy." He said sweetly as he tilted his head, and looked up at her._

 _"Hey." She said to her four year old son as she pulled one of the little chairs out and looked into his eyes. "How are you doing today down here?"_

 _"Okay." He shrugged. "It's lonely without Richie." He said as his lip stuck out slightly. "I want to go to school too."_

 _"I know. I know. he's your buddy."_

 _"Uh huh…" Greyson_ _nodded._

 _"What do you say me and you go on a little lunch date? Just you and mommy…"_

 _"Is Mari coming too?" He asked as he glanced to the infant nursery as he looked back to his mother._

 _"She doesn't have to come if you don't want her to come… I will visit her after our lunch date if you prefer."_

 _"So it's just me and you?" Greyson_ _asked with his eyebrows raised._

 _"Just me and you." Meredith said as her son giggled._

 _"What will daddy think that you're taking another boy to lunch, mommy?"_

 _"Oh, I think daddy knows where my heart is." Meredith said with a laugh as she stood up carefully and reached for her son's hand as he latched on securely, and the two of them made their way out of the daycare room together._

* * *

"Watching the tree again, dear?" Marion's voice broke through Meredith's reverie as their eyes met and she tried to push off the feeling of embarrassment.

"I'm sorry?" Meredith whispered as she tilted her head, watching as Marion smiled softly.

"You're watching the tree again. You're watching it, and you look so concerned."

"I think I'm just a little tired. I'm just tired, thinking about today and everything… work… and all the people that will be here, it's just a busy day… Christmas eve… and it's snowing."

"It's going to be a beautiful day, a beautiful afternoon, and when everyone is here, safe and secure, I'm sure you'll relax."

"The tree is beautiful this year." Meredith said softly. "I mean… it's beautiful every year, but I don't know, it just seems a little more mesmerizing each year."

"Mer, snap out of it." Cristina said as she squeezed her friend's hand. "Call them on the phone if you need to… stop worrying so much, they're fine."

"I know… I know… I'm not thinking about them, I'm thinking about…other things, it's okay… let's get some coffee… let's tell some stories or something while we wait for everyone else. Marion, I want to see some pictures of those great grand babies." She said with a smile as her eyes flashed to Derek as he walked into the room from the kitchen holding a tray of coffee. "See that, the man reads minds." She said as she grinned, waiting for her mother's reply as Ellis glanced to Derek.

"It's too easy, dear." Ellis said as she laughed at Derek, as he walked into the room with the tray of coffee with Mark right behind him.

* * *

 **5:00 PM**

Richie drove quietly as the darkness settled in on the mountains. The sky was still a deep, blue, but the snow was coming down harder, making it more difficult to see out the windshield.

"Can you see okay?" Greyson asked softly as he watched Richie struggle to see out the window.

"I'm doing alright. Are you nervous?"

"No… no, I trust you." Greyson said as he nodded and looked out the window. "I tried to call Ange… there's no cell service." He said softly.

"Probably not. We're up in the mountains." Richie replied. His eyes went down to his brother's hands and he watched them for a moment as they trembled. "You're sure you're alright?"

"Yeah." Greyson replied, looking down at his hands. "That's… that's… that's just the medicine, just the medicine." He stammered as Richie nodded his head and watched Greyson struggle for a moment as be blinked rapidly. "I…I… I'm just going to close my eyes for a few minutes, rest… rest for a little bit." He said as Richie nodded.

"Yeah, just relax, and I'll get you home."

"Safely."

"I always do." Richie said as he gave his brother a half smile as Greyson smiled slightly and closed his eyes, tipping his head back.

* * *

Meredith's eyes went to the window again as a set of lights flashed in the window. She was tempted to stand up, but instead decided to remain calm and listen to the story that Joann was telling her as she held her newest granddaughter in her arms. Meredith played with the baby's fingertips as she listened, laughing at the story as she looked up at the door opening, and sighed slightly as she realized it wasn't her sons.

There were people everywhere, and just about everyone had arrived. They were awaiting only a few more people as everyone settled in the living room, the family room, and many went upstairs to prepare their bedrooms for the overnight stay. She felt a hand on her shoulder as she looked up into Derek's eyes.

"Isn't she precious?" Meredith asked as Derek smiled and nodded.

"She ought to be." Derek said with a grin. "She's your son's goddaughter." He whispered as he leaned over Meredith and touched the baby's cheek as she cooed and grinned at Derek.

"Richie was so honored when Timothy and Lindsay asked him." Meredith said as she glanced over to Timothy as he talked to one of his cousins and glanced to his daughter as he held his wife's hand in his.

"Well, they asked someone they knew they could trust. And Richie and Timothy have grown to be such good friends." She smiled as Derek reached for the baby. "Where are you taking her?"

"Oh, Uncle Derek wants to hold her because he can." Derek said as the baby laughed at Derek as he held her up in his arms and watched her hands as they wiggled, and her fingertips wiggled toward him as he brought her down toward his face and made a silly sound, listening to her giggle. "One of these days, Mer, you're going to have a grandchild… and…"

"Wait." Meredith said with a laugh. "Wait right there. I'm going to have a grandchild? What about you?" She laughed as he looked down at her as he settled the baby on his chest for a moment and held her securely.

"Huh?"

"You said, one of these days, I'm going to have a grandchild."

"Oh yeah…" Derek said as a smirk raised on his face. "I'm too young to have grandchildren." He said with a laugh as he turned sharply and disappeared into the crowd with his great-niece, as Joann laughed at the look of shock and amusement on Meredith's face as Derek disappeared.

* * *

Richie drove silently and glanced to his brother as he tried to sleep. There was something about his appearance that wasn't sitting right with him, and he couldn't quite figure it out. "You're staring at me again." Greyson mumbled as he opened his eyes.

"Are you sure you've been eating?"

"I've been eating, I've been eating. Why do you sound like mom?"

"I don't know… there's just…"

"Just watch the road, Richie…" Greyson mumbled. "I am trying to get rid of this goddamned headache." He muttered as he held his hands to his temples.

"Headache…"

"It's probably the medicine…" He muttered.

"You're blaming an awful lot on that medicine." Richie replied.

"Well it's doing it to me!" Greyson exclaimed angrily. "It's this stupid goddamned medicine! I was better off without it! I have a fucking pill to take care of the depression, a pill to take care of my behavior, a pill to take care of the stomach aches from the first two, and I goddamned am not taking another fucking pill… I am so much better without it! So much better…" He muttered as he held his head tightly in his hand.

"You were better off without it? Without it, you had a fucking knife to your wrist and you were holding your family hostage!"

"I wasn't holding you hostage."

"Not literally, dumbass." Richie rolled his eyes. "You just… you just look sickly, is all I'm saying… not like the medicine is doing it… I don't know. I'm sorry, I didn't want you to think I was being too worried… or whatever…"

"I'm fine." He whispered as he touched his head. "I do appreciate your concern… I'm just… I'm just not feeling well, is all."

"Maybe you should have told Mom that you couldn't make it."

"Stop worrying about mom…" Greyson mumbled. "Everyone is always so worried about her, she's fine, she's strong… she's been through this with me time and again."

"Yeah, and she had to clean up your blood off the goddamned floor, Greyson. She's not doing well, she's not doing better. She doesn't need to see you suffering like this." Richie said, as his brother's eyes paled, his head leaning back as he stared at the side of his brother's head as he drove.

"Are you saying that I'm killing mom?" He whispered.

"No… no… I'm… I don't know what I'm saying, Grey. I'm just… I'm just watching you deteriorate and I'm just, I just can't stop thinking the way mom was feeling when you went to the hospital…. And when you left for school out here." Richie replied. "And you look sicker than you did before. I don't know what it is."

"It's… it's understandable." Greyson whispered. "I'm sorry I became so defensive." He whispered.

"It's fine." Richie replied. His eyes continued to stare out the windshield as a big gust of wind hit the car, sending billows of snow into the air, blocking the view of the road.

"Richie… slow down…"

"I'm not going fast, Grey, I'm not going to… Holy shit!" He exclaimed as he turned the corner and slammed on his brakes. A car was stuck on the side of the road, it's headlights half buried, sending Richie sliding down the road sideways again as he tried to avoid it. They missed the other car, but they didn't miss the ditch, or the tree. Richie turned the wheel trying to lessen the impact, but with a dull thud, and a crash, the passenger side of the car slid into the ditch, and slammed into the tree beside it, sending broken glass, snow, and ice through the window into the car, as it finally came to rest on the side of the road, deadly silent and smoking, wedged at a sickening angle against the snow packed ditch.


	3. Deja Vu

_Three children raced down the hallway as quickly as they could. The two older boys in the lead as their three year old sister lagged behind. "Wait for me, wait for me! Wait. FOR. ME!" She exclaimed as she stopped in her tracks and stomped her feet. "Greyson and Richie!" She screeched, watching as her older brothers stopped and turned around._

 _"What is your problem?" Richie asked as he watched his little sister put her hands on her hips angrily._

 _"Get your butts over here!" She exclaimed._

 _"Just come on, GG isn't going to wait forever for your slow butt." Richie exclaimed._

 _"Yeah, hurry your slow butt up." Greyson called as he glanced to Richie. "Slowpoke."_

 _"I am not a slowpoke. I'm just a little girl, and you two are big bullies!" She exclaimed as she stomped up to her brothers, and passed them._

 _"Are you three done running?" Meredith asked as she finally caught up to her three children and grasped hold of her daughter's hand._

 _"See, mommy says wait." Mariellis said as she stuck her tongue out at the two boys._

 _"None of that!" Meredith said softly as she laughed a little at her daughter's assertiveness._

 _"Boys are so dumb sometimes." She huffed as Greyson ran toward her._

 _"Boys are not dumb!" He exclaimed as he neared his sister, looking to run into her, Meredith tugged her arm out of her son's path as she grabbed hold of his arm._

 _"None of that either!" Meredith scolded._

 _"She said I'm dumb!"_

 _"And I took care of it, now if you don't behave you're not visiting GG."_

 _"Sorry." Greyson huffed as he grabbed hold of Meredith's hand as they neared Ellis' office together, Richie was ahead._

 _"Richard, make sure you knock first." Meredith called as Richie knocked, hearing his grandmother's voice coming from the inside office, he glanced to Meredith and she nodded, watching him run into the office, the door closing behind him as they approached, Mariellis ran off ahead and swung the door open and opened it._

 _"See, I was good, and I stayed with you, Mama." Greyson grinned._

 _"I see that. You're a very good boy."_

 _"I am." He smiled proudly._

 _"I think you're dumb." Mariellis said as she stuck her tongue out at Greyson and laughed as Meredith shook her head disapprovingly as Greyson grasped Meredith's hand tighter as they entered Ellis' office._

 _"Do I hear name calling out there?" Ellis' voice boomed as Mariellis' jaw dropped as she ran into her grandmother's office._

 _"She hears everything, she's GG." Meredith said with her eyebrows raised._

 _"She's the boss." Greyson confirmed as he released his mother's hand and ran into Ellis' office to get his share of the hugs._

 _When Meredith walked into the office, Ellis was covered in her three kids, Mari in her lap, Greyson and Richie hanging off the chair as they jumped and kissed her cheek. "You look like you're exhausted." Ellis said to her daughter as she rubbed her forehead for a moment as the three kids chattered away, each looking for a different answer to a different question._

 _"I'm fine." Meredith replied as she gave away her lie with a yawn._

 _"You were on call last night."_

 _"I was."_

 _"And you have the three monsters today."_

 _"It's the weekend, no school to send them to." Meredith said with a yawn as she plopped down into one of the chairs. "And no, I'm not leaving them with you." She said as Ellis' eyebrows raised. "Too much trouble."_

 _"Then leave one with me. It's getting close to Christmas. I'm sure there are some things I can find for one of them to do."_

 _"Your office needs straightening?" Meredith laughed._

 _"Ha, funny. I don't have my grandchildren do menial tasks around my office."_

 _"That's for the attendings." Meredith laughed._

 _"Only one attending, and he knows his place around here." Ellis replied. "Always trying to win my affection. He'll learn, one of these days."_

 _"What is that?"_

 _"I have no affection. Toward anyone." Ellis replied coldly._

 _"Oh yeah, right." Meredith nodded as she watched her daughter cuddle into her grandmother as Greyson jumped and hung from the chair, turning her around in a circle as Richie laughed and pushed his brother and Ellis went in a full circle. "No affection whatsoever." Meredith laughed._

 _"Nope." Ellis laughed. "Leave the hanging one," Ellis winked._

 _"Alright." Meredith laughed. "Richie, Mari... let's go meet daddy for lunch."_

 _"I get to stay with GG?" Greyson exclaimed happily._

 _"You sure do." Meredith smiled._

 _"Awesome!" He exclaimed as he jumped from the chair._

 _"Aww! Mommy! I wanted to stay with GG!" Richie exclaimed._

 _"It's Grey's turn." Meredith rolled her eyes as Mariellis hugged Ellis and slid from her lap._

 _"Let's go see Daddy!" Mariellis exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air._

 _"We'll be back later." Meredith said with a smile as Ellis smiled back, watching her daughter grab her youngest's hand before she went running out the door._

 _"Bye, Mommy!" Greyson exclaimed happily as Richie followed his mother out the door, smiling as he turned to Ellis. "What are we gonna do for fun today, GG?" Greyson exclaimed happily as he leaned on her desk with a smile._

 _"Go on and get the plastic container over there, under that table, and I'll show you exactly what we're going to do." She said as she pointed at the table across the room as she watched her grandson run across toward it with a giggle._

* * *

Ellis sat by the Christmas tree, admiring the many ornaments. One particular ornament caught her eye, and she frowned slightly as she touched it with her fingertips. She sighed, when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked to her left to see Marion sitting beside her and smiled softly at her. "I'm concerned." She said softly as Ellis nodded knowingly.

"I know." Ellis replied bluntly.

"I mean, I keep hearing of all of the things going on over there, but I'm so far away." She whispered as she watched Meredith laugh with her sister's in law as she tried her hardest to relax and have a good time. "He's really sick, isn't he?" She whispered as Ellis nodded softly.

"He's been going steadily downhill since junior high, I'd say..." She whispered. "His cognitive abilities were lacking, his drive wasn't there. It started out as something that looked like ADD, and he was having little spells of staring off into space, sometimes it would take several minutes to snap him out of it. You've seen him have those little spells, haven't you?" Ellis whispered as Marion nodded. They were kind of few and far between, and then he was on medication."

"I remember that," Marion replied as she glanced to Meredith again as she continued laughing with her sisters in law. "And he seemed to be getting better."

"He was, a few mood swings here and there, some more severe than others. He was doing really well, and last spring."

"Oh, you don't have to say anymore." Marion whispered as she tried so hard not to be hurt about it, to try to block the memory from her mind. She remembered the frantic phone call, the fear, the sadness. She remembered Meredith crying over the phone, she didn't need to hear any more to know what Ellis was talking about.

"It kind of erupted from there." Ellis whispered. "It came to blows last spring, and he locked himself in his room, and wouldn't let anyone in. He was convinced everyone was out to kill him. He was very volatile and… finally, Derek couldn't take it anymore and he opened the door. As he walked into the room, Greyson cut his… Greyson cut his wrists… both of them… and Derek… Derek had to rush him to the hospital. Thankfully there wasn't much damage, he didn't cut very deeply, but he was admitted immediately."

"Oh, Ellis." Marion said, her voice catching in her throat as she caught the attention of Meredith from across the room, and both women were caught. The silence between them hung in the air like death itself, as Meredith's eyes stared long and hard into her mother's face as Ellis' eyes refused to leave Marion's. It was if she were wishing that the couch would swallow her up in that moment, as she watched Marion's lips move in apology. And as the silence between them deafened them, the voices and movement and sounds of those around them seemed muted compared to the fearful and angry silence that was passed across the room.

"Mother?" Meredith's voice broke through the silence and embarrassment as Ellis looked up into her daughter's cold, steely stare. Marion hardly recognized the young woman that had always appeared youthful and happy deep within, the happiness was shadowed with the fears of the recent past, and Meredith's eyes softened slightly in understanding, her initial reaction fading after a second, seeing the apology in her mother's eyes. "What was the name of that restaurant that we went to last year near St. Patrick's day? The one with the Christmas lights all year round?" She asked, as if that had been her question the whole time, and not as if she were trying to change the subject.

"Murphy's, I believe," Ellis replied, nodding in apology as she received a thankful nod from her daughter as her attention slipped back to her sisters in law. Ellis looked back to Marion, who watched the entire exchange with a sad curiousness and smiled sadly at Ellis as she nodded. "Meredith was suffering having him near, watching him hurt himself, not only physically, but he was released from the hospital, they talked to him about sending him to Vermont for some fresh air, and to finish high school there. There was an exquisite school in the mountains that offered therapy and classes, privacy and freedom, and Meredith and Derek have been there to visit. He seems happy there."

* * *

"That's great." Marion said softly as she tried to remain positive.

"He hasn't been home since August. Hasn't seen Meredith since the beginning of September, though they've talked on the phone every chance they get." Ellis said softly.

"I wish we knew what had gotten into him." Marion whispered softly.

"I get the feeling that whatever it is, it's not something we could have helped." Ellis replied. "Meredith wants to blame herself, but there is just something about his behavior that just doesn't seem right to me. it doesn't seem to fit the typical middle child syndrome, or environmental behavioral problem. He was diagnosed with mild schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. They have had him on six different types of medication."

"Let's hope that a little time away will help him." Marion replied as she grasped Ellis' hand. "Let's hope that he's grown some since then."

"I just miss my little prince." Ellis said sadly as she sighed, looking at the Christmas ornament on the tree with the name 'Grey' scrawled haphazardly across it. "Things were a lot easier then."

"They were." Marion said softly as she smiled sadly. "Greyson is strong, he's so very strong. He can make it through anything." She said softly as Ellis smiled slightly and settled back in her chair as they stared into the Christmas tree in thought as they both prayed for that to be true.

* * *

The hissing of the engine was the first thing he heard as he came out of his unconscious fog. He could hear, and unless that was a serpent, calling him to hell for his final resting place, Richie was fairly certain that he was still alive. He could hear the hissing of the engine, and feel the cold of the evening air stinging his skin, his lungs, his body. He could smell the burning smell of crushed metal, mixed with the smell of gasoline. He could taste blood in his mouth, not a large amount, but from the cut on his lip, he could taste the tinny flavor of his own blood as it seeped from the cut. He listened for a moment, trying to assess the situation, trying to remember for a second exactly why he was lying sideways in his car, waking up from what felt like a violent dream, only to find that it was in fact, a violent reality.

He listened and could hear nothing but the hissing of the car as it cooled in the snow, lodged tightly against a snowbank, the passenger side smashed in, the passenger side of his car smashed. "Oh God, no…" he mumbled as he opened his eyes wider. "Oh God, Greyson." He groaned. "Greyson?" He whispered as he tried to see through the murky darkness over the overturned car, reaching to his side for a sign of his brother. "Greyson! Greyson!" He exclaimed as he panicked, grabbing hold of the first soft thing he could find, cutting his fingers on the broken glass that covered them as he shifted his own body, finding that he could move quite freely as he unbuckled his seatbelt and grasped his brother's jacket. "Greyson, talk to me! Greyson!" He exclaimed as he pulled at his brother, feeling for his face, he touched his brother's face and ran his hand over his features, finding he was breathing, he knew that he needed to get him out.

"Hey!" A voice interrupted Richie's panic, though he continued to shift around the car, finding his gloves in his pockets, he pulled them out and slipped them onto his hands. "Hey! Are you alright in there?" Richie didn't care who was out there, he had to get himself and his brother out of the car.

"I need help!" Richie exclaimed. "I need help, my brother is hurt, and I can't get him out, I can't see him! I need help!" Richie exclaimed as he saw the beam of a flashlight in the car as he felt someone climbing up the side of the car slightly, the snowflakes falling through the broken window above him as he tried to see anything, the darkness swallowing him whole. "Who is out there? Give me your flashlight!" He called. "Please! Please, just drop it in here! I need to check on my brother, he's not responding!" He said as he felt an arm reach in and drop the flashlight into his lap, he flashed it up, hitting the face of a young woman looking down on him, her blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail, her cheeks red from the cold as her blue eyes met Richie's before he nearly blinded her with the flashlight.

"Hey, watch it." The voice muttered as he whispered a thanks and flashed the light to the other side of the car. The passenger side was up against the snowbank, the snow packed down and the windows broken. Greyson was leaning with his head against the side of the car, both hands visible as he lay unconscious.

"Is he still breathing?" The voice asked from above Richie, who pulled on his brother's jacket. "Hey, is your brother…"

"Yes, yes, he's still breathing, but I have to get him out of here. I have to get him out of here." Richie muttered as he pulled at Greyson, lifting his head into his chest. "Grey, talk to me! Grey, wake up!" Richie said as he felt his brother's face, feeling the stickiness of the blood from the broken glass against his skin, Richie pulled on his arm, watching it flop back in an awkward angle. "Holy shit, fuck!"

"What? What's going on?"

"His fucking arm is broken! Goddamn it, fuck!"

"His arm is broken? Is he in shock, or is he unconscious? Make sure his legs aren't stuck, are they stuck? We need to pull the car up. We need to pull the car up or make sure it doesn't tip, so we can get him out!" She called as she reached down. "Give me the flashlight!" She shouted as Richie continued to look over his brother. "Give me the light!" She exclaimed as she climbed into the car and nearly fell on top of Richie.

"What the hell are you doing?" He asked as she started to pull on Greyson's jacket.

"I'm a doctor." She muttered as she started to pull the jacket, shoving herself beneath Richie, so that he was practically hugging her as she snatched the flashlight out of his hand and quickly looked over Greyson, pulling his legs to make sure they weren't stuck beneath the dashboard.

"A doctor." he whispered, only slightly relieved at the words.

"Actually, a med student."

"A med student?" Richie asked anxiously.

"Third year, stop freaking out and help me pull him out of here!" She said as she pushed hard against Richie and stood up slightly, pulling her jacket off, a soft whiff of perfume invaded his senses for a split second as she pushed back against him momentarily as she steadied herself.

"What are you doing?" He asked anxiously as he watched her glance back at him, his head hanging over her shoulder as she reached forward with the sleeves of her jacket and wrapped them around Greyson's body, pulling the sleeve from the other side, under his arms. She unsnapped his seatbelt and felt his body slump as she looked up at the broken window right above her.

"We need to lift him up and out." She said as she raised her eyebrows and turned her head, her face only inches from his. "Got it?"

"Up and out?"

"Up and out, we're using my coat as a sling. it's around his shoulders and it won't affect his broken arm, but I need you to pull him."

"Pull him?"

"Pull him up. I can't do it, you're going to have to help me."

"Up and out?"

"Up and out." She replied as she handed him the ends of her sleeves. "And just so you know, that's my favorite jacket."

"Just so you know," He replied just as quickly. "That's my favorite brother." He said as she smiled just slightly and nodded. "Alright?" She said. "Ready?" She asked.

"I'm ready." Richie said as he watched her pull herself up and out of the car, holding the flashlight in her hands as she shivered in the cold, her blue sweater glistening with fallen snow as he looked up. "On the count of three."

"One…"

"Two…"

"Three!" She exclaimed as Richie pulled on Greyson, feeling his body lift from the seat, he pulled him into him and stood up carefully, his arm wrapped around Greyson's waist as he pulled him up. "Alright, He said as he felt to see if Greyson was still breathing. "He's still breathing. He's still… still, breathing." Richie said as he pulled on his brother slightly and held tightly to him as he sat unmoving for a moment.

"Here, let me open the door. I don't want you to get cut, and you need to get both of you out." She said as she pulled on the door, holding it open for Richie as he tried to figure how he was going to climb out of the car without making it tip, without hurting Greyson anymore than he already was. The flashlight disappeared for a moment. He took a deep breath, and was about to look up when he felt a pair of warm hands on his face. "There you are." She said softly as she felt down his neck to his arms, where she reached for Greyson's head. "Make sure you keep his head as steady as you can, you don't know how bad his injuries are."

"Moot point." Richie replied. "Get us the fuck out of here, please." he said calmly.

"Alright, alright, no sense in getting all pissy." She said as she reached for her coat. "I have my coat, lift… lift him up and I'll pull the coat, and you can climb up after you get him out."

"Good idea." He said as he handed her the sleeves of the coat, and felt her grip them tightly as he lifted his brother. It was then he realized how much his hands were trembling. Not from cold, but from the sheer adrenaline running through his body. He lifted and could feel her pulling on the coat, his brother's body lifted out of the car before his very eyes, his feet dangling for a moment before they slid completely out, he felt the car shift slightly, heard a tumble, and then a blood curdling scream, that if it had not been for the circumstances they had found themselves in, he would be worried, but for now, that scream was the only definitive answer to the question of whether or not his brother was alive.

Richie sat for a moment in the car, the sound of his brother's gut wrenching screaming sent shockwaves through his body as he carefully pulled himself up, standing on the back of the seat as he lifted himself out of the car. He tried not to look down at the ground where his brother and the girl had landed, but the sound of his screaming was too much to ignore.

"You have to calm down, you have to calm down." The girl said as she pulled at Greyson's good arm as he grabbed his broken arm, the pain shooting through his body was too much for him to bear and he shivered and screamed, tears streaming down his cheeks as he stared blindly at the girl as he screamed with terror and fear, pain and frustration.

The sounds of his screams echoed off the mountainside, resonated off the trees and sunk deep into the snow covered ground. He screamed a long, deep scream as he ran his hand over his face, pushing the fragments of glass from the car into his skin. "Greyson, no." Richie said as he jumped to his brother's side and grabbed his hand, reaching his other hand across his brother's skin, he tried to sooth him.

"RICHIE! RICHIE! IT HURTS! IT HURTS, RICHIE!" He screamed, sucking in a deep breath before he continued his tirade. "IT HURTS! IT HURTS! MAKE IT STOP HURTING! OH GOD! I AM GOING TO DIE!" He screamed loudly as he breathed in and out quickly as Richie held him close as he lay on the snow, his head leaning back as Richie looked up at the girl as she reached for Greyson.

"What are you doing?" Richie asked as she pulled at Greyson's coat. "He needs to stay warm, you don't want him to go into shock."

"I need to look at the arm, we need to set it."

"He's screaming here! He's freaking out! He's in enough pain!" Richie exclaimed as he started to panic, his voice shouting over Greyson's screaming and crying. "We can't do this to him!"

"You need to set the arm and make sure there isn't any bleeding. I'm taking the coat off him."

"It's freezing out here!"

"I'm not moving him until he's stable, so either you help me get this coat off him, or you can sit there and argue with me, because I'm getting it done. Listen, um… Go into my car. There's a first aid kit in the middle rows of seats, under the cushion." She said as she watched Richie pause. "Go!" She exclaimed as Richie ran toward the car. The girl continued to pull at Greyson's jacket. "Come on now, buddy, relax… relax, you're alright." She said as she stopped for a moment, looking at the complexion of his skin, she looked at him oddly for a moment as he screamed, she furrowed her brow as she looked his face. "Oh shit," She whispered as she increased her speed at getting the coat off, feeling him push against her as he tried to roll away, the pain in his arm intense.

Richie ran toward the girl's SUV, and automatically realized that it was this car, that had caused him to swerve in the first place. It was this car, pushed into the snowbank and obviously stuck, that had caused his accident, that had caused his brother the pain he was in. He swung the door open. "Goddamned fucking idiot, fucking stupid fucking idiot." He growled under his breath as he reached for the middle seat, the dome light in the SUV not turning on. "God fucking damn it!" he exclaimed.

"Hey, I'm telling on you!" A voice interrupted Richie's angry words as he looked up, catching a glimpse of a small face looking at him from the front seat, a little girl, who was probably no more than five or six was staring at him.

"Telling on me?" Richie asked as he continued to search for the first aid kit.

"You said the 'eff' word, like, a billion times. Just you wait, you're going to be in so much trouble." She said with a huff. Her eyes matched those of the girl outside, and her hair was blonde, tied in a delicate ponytail, her arms crossed over her chest as she watched the stranger with a watchful eye.

"I'm… sorry?" He asked as he grabbed the first aid kit and glanced one more time at the little girl as he slammed the cushion down on the seat, turned and walked away from the car, closing the door behind him as he ran back toward the young woman and his brother.

* * *

 **7:00 PM-**

Derek walked into the living room and looked around the room. The spot where his wife had been sitting was now empty, and by scanning the room, he didn't see her anywhere. He laughed at himself for doing it, but he pulled out his cell phone and dialed hers.

"I'm going to find them." She said into the line, without even giving a greeting.

"Where are you?" Derek asked as he walked through the house and nodded as he passed his sister's curious eyes.

"I'm in the car, I'm going to go look for…"

"Meredith, get back in the house." Derek said as he made his way toward the door at a quick pace.

"They're not answering their phones, Derek. They could be in trouble. They should be here, I was just going to…"

"No, Meredith. You're not going to drive around aimlessly in the snow to look for your sons who are fine, they're fine." He said as he stepped out onto the porch to see the car running in the driveway. "Meredith, please come inside." Derek said softly into the line as he listened to the car pulled into reverse.

"Where's mom going?" Mariellis asked as she stepped up behind her father and glanced out the door.

"She's not going anywhere, get in the house." Derek nodded toward the door.

"Derek, I'm going to go look for them. I won't be long." She said as the car still hadn't moved.

"Meredith, you're not going to know where to look, they're on their way. They may have had to stop because of the snow, but they're going to be here."

"I should go look for them." She said again into the phone line.

"Meri, don't do this."

"I'll go with her." Mariellis said from behind Derek.

"What did I just say to you? Get in the house!" Derek said as he turned and watched his daughter step back inside. "Now close the door." He said as his eyes flashed to the car and back to his daughter. "Close the door, Granny's not heating the outside." He said as he reached for the doorknob as Mariellis refused to move.

"Meredith, please come into the house." Derek said as he turned away from the door. After a moment, he heard his daughter close the door as the winter chill finally got to her.

"Derek, I'm worried about them."

"I know you're worried about them, they're coming."

"They should be here by now." Meredith mumbled into the line as Derek listened to her sniffling.

"Meri, I'm not letting you drive, not tonight, not on Christmas eve." He said softly into the line. "You know you're not allowed to drive on Christmas eve." He said with a playful tone.

"Derek…"

"Come on, baby, your boys are fine." He said into the line as she remained silent for a moment. "I'll go driving with Mark if it'll make you feel better." He said softly. "We'll ride around and see if we see them, and I'll call you if we find anything out. How does that sound? Do you want me to do that?"

"I can do that." Meredith replied.

"You can." He said as he shrugged, his body beginning to feel the cold biting his skin as he stand on the porch staring at the car. "You can do it, but I'd prefer it if I did it. So you can visit with everyone,and keep your mind off things that are bothering you. Please come inside and let Mark and I go out and look for them."

"You'll really look?"

"We'll really look, we'll even take the girls, so you have two spies with us that are more than willing to point out any missteps that we make." Derek promised. "Please come inside where it's warm and safe. Please?" He said softly as he waited for her response. "Meri?"

After a moment, the sound of the car going into park was heard, and the engine was cut, the lights turned off. "I love you." She whispered into the line as the door opened to the car.

"I love you too." Derek said softly as he watched her emerge from the car, he stepped forward and realized he was still in his socks, now wet and cold from the snow that had fallen on the porch. "Hurry, before my toes freeze off!" He said as he watched her giggle, hearing it in the phone line as she walked toward him.

"I don't want that to happen." She said into the line as she started to step up the stairs, she watched as he put his foot into the slushy snow on the step. "Derek, you don't have shoes on!" She said, putting her cell phone in her pocket.

"No." He said as he grabbed her hand as she walked up the steps, he slipped his phone into his pocket and pulled her to him. "I didn't have time to look for shoes, my angel was trying to escape." "Let's get inside." He said as he kissed her head softly.

"You're going to catch a cold, dummy." She said as she pulled him by his hand and climbed the stairs as he let her pull him.

"Oh, I call you angel, and you call me dummy. I see how it is." He teased as they reached the door and he pulled her into his arms again, hugging her close to him as he kissed her temple. "They're going to be fine, and you have to stop worrying."

"And you two have to get in this house before you catch pneumonia and die, and I'm an orphan." Mariellis said as she cracked the door open a little bit and then closed it.

"We should get in the house." Meredith whispered.

"Yeah, we don't want to make her dye her hair red, put it in curls and make her wear a burlap sack for a dress." Derek said as Meredith laughed and gripped him tightly as they walked into the house.

"Really?" Meredith teased. "I thought burlap was 'in'."

"Oh Meredith." Derek rolled his eyes as he listened to her giggle. "You have so much to learn about fashion." He said as Mariellis scowled at them.

"Oh, you two are hilarious." Mariellis said with a mischievous scowl.

"Wipe that look off your face and get Mik and Mark, we're going for a ride." He said as Mari's face lit up.

"Awesome!" She exclaimed as she ran off to find Mark and Mikala.

* * *

Richie slammed down onto his knees in the snow next to his screaming brother as the young woman held him securely. His coat was pulled off, and she was trying to keep him still. "Get her off of me! Get off of me!" Greyson shouted loudly and angrily as he struggled against her. "Richie! She's going to kill me! Get her off me! Get her off me!"

"Stop being a big baby." She said amid his screams as she cushioned his broken arm against his coat as she glanced up at Richie. "Hey, Ace. Hand me the kit." She said quickly as Greyson continued screaming.

"My name is Richard." Richie said quickly as he handed the first aid kit to her. "What are you going to do?"

"Well, Richard." She said with a sarcastic tone. "First we're going to pop his arm back into joint, then, we're going to splint the broken arm."

"His arm is pulled…"

"His shoulder must have slammed into the door, popped it out, it's going to hurt like a bitch pushing it in, but we can."

"Stop! Stop hurting me! Stop! Richie! Richie Make her stop!" Greyson screamed as he reached out for Richie, sending more shockwaves of pain through his body as he moved his arm.

"Greyson, stop… stop screaming, stop, we're doing all we can… please… please, stop screaming." Richie said as he held his brother's good arm and moved close to him, staring into his eyes as Greyson continued to sob. Tears were running down his face, the blood from the various cuts making eerie trails down the sides of his cheeks as he screamed and sobbed loudly.

"I… I… I can't. I can't help it. It hurts! It hurts so much! Please make her stop! Please, Richie, please! Please!"

"I know. I know, man, just try to relax, breathe deeply, come on, slowly." Richie said as the young woman suddenly moved Greyson's arm swiftly, up and around, sending the joint popping into place as Greyson's back arched up and slammed back into the ground as he nearly slammed his head into Richie's head and screamed so loudly, that Richie wasn't sure if his eardrums had been blown out. "HOLY FUCKING CHRIST! DID YOU HAVE TO DO THAT?" Richie fell backwards onto the snow as he screamed over his brother as he continued to howl in pain.

"What did you want me to do, coax it back in with a lullaby?" She asked sarcastically as she ran her fingers over Greyson's shoulder blade, confirming that his shoulder was now in place. "I'm trying to help you here, and you're going to scream at me?"

"If your fucking car wasn't in the middle of the fucking road, I wouldn't be in this mess!" Richie exclaimed. "Are you stupid? Are you really that stupid?" He shouted as he sat up and screamed in her face, his fear and anxiety fueling his emotions as his brother continued to howl in pain beneath him.

"My car is stuck! Can't you tell, or were you driving with your fucking eyes closed? That is how it seems to me! You're the shitty driver!"

"I was driving just fine until I saw your goddamned monster truck sticking out of the fucking snow!" Richie said as he stood up, looking down at her angrily, his ears turning bright red, his cheeks beginning to flush with both cold and anger as he sniffled.

"My car? My car? You were the one driving like a bat out of hell! You came flying around that corner, I thought you were going to sail right over my car! I didn't do this to your brother! You did this to your brother!" She exclaimed as she stood up and approached him, pushing her body against his as she shouted at him, her face red and angry as she screamed at him, her ears burning in the cold.

"I didn't cause this! If your stupid car wasn't there, I wouldn't have had to swerve! I wouldn't have had to slam on my brakes, and I wouldn't have slammed into that fucking goddamned tree! This is YOUR fault! So don't get all 'holier than thou' with me!"

"Who drives a fucking sports car in the winter, anyway? Huh? Who does that? Idiots, that's who! Only a godforsaken IDIOT would drive a sports car in the fucking snow!" She shouted angrily.

"Oh my Gosh!" A little voice exclaimed as they both turned to see the little girl from the car standing just feet from them, her mouth open wide as they then both glanced down to Greyson, who was sobbing, his screaming fit now over as he lay in the snow crying. "Are you going to stop yelling for one minute and help the poor guy on the ground?" She squeaked.

"Riley, get in the car!" The young woman shouted as she turned away from Richie and pointed at her SUV.

"I don't want to! I want to know what's going on! Santa is supposed to be coming, and you're swearing and yelling and being bad, and why is that man crying? What are you doing? Why are you being so bad?" She asked as she watched Greyson cry for a moment, seeing the angry look on the woman's eyes, she shook her head disapprovingly.

"Riley! Car!" The girl shouted.

"Now you're yelling at me? What is going on out here? Are you killing him? Why are you killing that man?"

"GET IN THE CAR NOW, RILEY!"

"ANSWER ME!" The little girl stomped her feet.

"No, I'm not killing him! Now get in the car or I'll kill you!" She exclaimed as she took a step toward the little girl and watched as she took off toward the car and leapt inside, closing the door behind her as the young woman scowled at Richie as she knelt down next to Greyson. "Hey, Hey, I'm sorry about your shoulder." She said as she held his arm tenderly. "Can you talk to me? I need you to talk to me." She whispered as she tenderly touched his chest. Greyson sobbed as she looked into his eyes. "Can you understand me?" She whispered as she felt Richie kneel beside his brother on the other side. "Can you understand what I'm saying?" She asked as he nodded through his sobs. "Okay, you're going to have to help me here, I need to make sure that you are alright. Other than your arm, does it hurt anywhere else?"

"He had a headache right before the accident." Richie said as she looked up at him and scowled.

"I'm looking for communication from him, not you." She snapped, instantly feeling bad as his face fell and his eyes moved down to his brother.

"Does it hurt anywhere else? What's his name?" She asked Richie, trying to bring him back into the conversation. Richie paused for a moment and looked up into her eyes.

"Grey." He whispered.

"Grey?"

"Yeah, like the color. Grey, his name is Greyson." Richie whispered.

She paused for a moment as if focusing on his words. She nodded softly and looked down at Grey. "Greyson, can you nod your head? Shake your head? Does it hurt anywhere else?" She asked.

"My stomach… It hurts… my stomach hurts." He groaned through his sobs as he tried to stay calm. "It hurts, please make it stop hurting." He sobbed.

"It's alright, we're going to set your arm, Greyson and we'll try to figure out what's wrong with your stomach. You have to help us though. Try to remain calm, alright? Can you do that? We're going to get you out of the snow and into the back of my car."

"What good is that going to do us?" Richie asked. "Your car is stuck."

"Yeah, well your car is totaled, so if you want to argue about it some more, we can all freeze to death out here." She said harshly as she shivered, her teeth chattering slightly as she continued to look down at Greyson. Her coat lay across the snow where she had dropped it after helping Greyson out of the car. "Alright, I'm going to put a couple of sticks along your arm and wrap it with gauze. it'll be a makeshift brace while we move you and then we'll try to get you to a hospital." She whispered. "Richard?" She said as she stood up, Richie standing beside her. "Can I talk to you for a second?" She asked as Richie nodded, she stepped away from Grey and looked into Richie's eyes. "I think we have something more here than just a broken arm."

"What do you mean?" He whispered back to her, her eyes flashed to the young man on the ground as he cried.

"I mean… his skin, his complexion. He has has jaundice."

"Jaundice?"

"Yellowing of the skin, it could be a liver infection, or something with his liver…"

"You mean I gave him a…"

"No, I think this goes deeper than the accident. This is the accident notwithstanding. He needs to get to the hospital and soon. We'll check him for other injuries, but I won't know how severe it is until he gets some tests done." She whispered as Richie swallowed hard.

He wanted to ask more questions, he needed answers. He opened his mouth and closed it again, watching as she shivered again. He closed his mouth and took a slow deep breath. "I'm going to look for some sticks for his brace. Stay with him." He said as he pulled the flashlight over the trees nearby the car. "Here." Richie said as he pulled his jacket off his back.

"What are you doing? No, no, I don't…" She said as Richie ignored her protest as he wrapped his coat around her, pulling it tightly, he handed her the flashlight.

"You're the one saving our lives." He said softly as he gave her a slight smile. "Stay warm." He said quickly as he turned on his heel and walked toward the trees as she stood staring after him for a moment as he disappeared into the darkness.


	4. Out in the Cold

Derek drove slowly through town, the girls sat in the back seat talking quietly and giggling as Mark looked out the window. "How does she expect us to find them?"

"I don't think she expects us to find them, exactly." Derek replied, glancing to his friend's incredulous look. "I think it just makes her feel better to know that someone is out looking for them."

"When was the last time you heard from them? When they called and we were on the way?" Mark asked.

"Yeah, they were supposed to be in at about five. it's after seven now, and you know Meredith with the boys."

"What car did they drive?" Mark asked as they passed another car on the road.

"Richie's car." Derek said with a disapproving sigh.

"The corvette? Are you kidding me? Meredith let…"

"We didn't have a choice. Richie was picking him up on the way home from school. It's all he has."

"You're going to be so lucky if you get them here in one piece, Derek. That car is not made for this kind of weather." Mark said as Derek glared at him. "Sorry." He said as Derek sighed slowly. "They're fine, they're fine." Mark said as he watched Derek clench his jaw as he drove slowly from town, onto a snowy country road, and made his way along the path that he was fairly sure Richie would follow to get there.

* * *

Richie walked out from around his car, carrying several strong pieces of branches that he thought would be strong enough to hold. He watched from beside the car for a moment as the young woman tended to his brother. She had pulled her coat from where it had landed and wrapped it over his brother as she lean over him gently, talking to him as he breathed heavily, his breath sending circles of steam into the cold, winter air. Richie shivered at the cold biting at his body and headed toward the two of them.

"We're going to get you out of the cold as soon as Richard gets back, as soon as he gets back, we'll get your arm taken care of and get you out of the cold." She whispered as she watched Greyson's teeth chatter.

"We should get him into the car first." Richie said as he watched her jump at the sound of his voice. Her eyes moved up to meet his. "That way we can warm up a little and we can work on him a little easier. We're all freezing out here."

"We can't carry him to the car." She said nervously as Richie shook his head. "What?"

"He can walk, his legs are fine. We'll walk with him. Just splint the arm as best as you can, pressing it against his body and we'll stand him up and walk him toward the car. Doesn't the SUV have a hatch? He can lay down in the back. Do you have room for him to lay down in the back?"

"There should be room. I can move things around." She said as she glanced to the car. "Do you think it's a good idea to move him?"

"All I know, is that I'm really, really cold, and I don't see that it'll benefit us at all if we keep…"

"Just get me somewhere warm. For the love of God! Stop talking about it, and start doing something!" Greyson exclaimed as he gritted his teeth and growled. "Please." He whimpered.

"Let me stabilize his arm." She whispered as she glanced to Greyson. "I'm going to have to bend your arm at the elbow." She said softly.

"Just… just be gentle, please." he whispered as she nodded and watched him for a second before glancing up at Richie.

"Here." Richie said as he reached down with his hand and grasped his brother's good arm. "Hold my hand, squeeze it when it hurts." he said softly as Greyson nodded, his teeth chattering. The young woman glanced to Richie and back to Greyson as she very gently started to move Greyson's arm.

"Look at me." She whispered. "Look in my eyes, and we can do it together." She whispered.

"You're very pretty." Greyson whispered as he winced, staring into her eyes as she moved his arm carefully, the pain shooting through his body.

"Hey, that's enough flirting." Richie teased as she laughed and began to secure Greyson's arm so that it wouldn't bend when they stood him up.

"That's right." She said with a laugh. "No flirting." She could feel her cheeks begin to burn slightly in embarrassment as she checked to make sure his arm wouldn't fall out of the makeshift sling. "There, that should be good." She said softly as she gave Greyson a supportive smile.

"I don't even know your name." he whispered as he squeezed his brother's hand. "You're saving my life, and I don't even know your name." He said as his teeth chattered.

"Harper." She said softly as she glanced up into Richie's eyes as she finished what she was doing, catching his gaze as he watched her.

"Harper…" Richie whispered.

"Mmhmm…" She said with a hint of a smile, her eyes caught in Richie's for a moment as he swallowed hard. "Richard?" She whispered as he nodded slightly. "Are you ready to lift him?" She asked softly as he was pulled out of his reverie, she smiled slightly at his flustered reaction.

"Um… yeah." Richie said as he tore his eyes from hers "Yeah, I'm ready to lift him. Grey, are you ready?" He asked as Greyson nodded, a slight smirk on his face, and through the pain, Richie could see a mischievous glint in his brother's eyes. "What?"

"Nothing." Greyson replied, his eyes moving to Harper as she turned to close the first aid kit, his eyes moved back to his brother and his smirk widened slightly.

"Greyson." Richie growled under his breath as his message was sent to his brother loud and clear, he could only smirk back as his brother let out a pain filled laugh, a sound that felt strange moving from his lips.

"I was only trying to help you… Richard." He laughed again as he coughed. "Oh God…" He coughed harder as Richie tried to sit him up slightly. "Oh God, oh…" He groaned as he winced and coughed a little harder.

"Grey,are you alright?" Richie said as he held his brother securely as Harper looked up, reaching for Greyson's side, she held him as he coughed, pushing him slightly to help Richie sit him up. "Grey?" Richie said as he coughed, Greyson turned his head and spit, sending a streak of red into the snow beside them, his mind too filled with the pain he was feeling to notice the look of panic in both Harper and his brother's eyes.

"Let's get him to the car." Harper said quickly as she refused to say out loud what was happening, as if by not saying it, the pain would go away, the cold would go away, the red splotch in the snow, would sink and never be thought of again.

"But… what does…?" Richie started to panic.

"You have to remain calm." Harper said softly. "Trust me, the worst thing you can do right now is panic. Let's get him to the car, get him stable, and we'll talk."

"Okay." Richie said with a soft sigh as he gripped Greyson's good arm. "I'll lift by his good arm, you, make sure his legs end up underneath him, and then you can support that side, and we'll walk him toward the car."

"Fine." She nodded in agreement as she looked to Greyson. "Grey, are you ready? Are you ready to get up? You're going to have to help us."

"Uh huh." Greyson whispered as he felt his lungs wheezing. "Am I going to die?" He whispered as he looked her in the eyes, his body sore and spent, his face full of pain.

"Some day, but not today, and not anytime soon." Harper said with confidence.

"You promise?" He whispered as Richie looked to her quickly as her eyes remained on Greyson's.

"There's not a doubt in my mind. Now stop being negative, and let's get you to the car." Harper said with a smile as she looked to Richie. "Ready?"

"Ready." Richie said quickly as he gripped Greyson's arm, and very carefully pulled his brother from the ground, lifting him nearly onto his back, Harper made sure Greyson's feet were on the ground, that his legs were in working order, and she moved ahead toward the car.

"I'll get the hatch open." She said as she moved toward the car quickly as Richie hauled his brother carefully toward it. She moved around the back and pushed the snow from behind the half buried SUV. She used her hands, feeling the cold, bitter snow pushing through her gloves as she reached for the hatch and unclasped it, sending the door open in the back.

"What are you doing? It's cold out there!" Riley exclaimed as she leapt into the seat farthest back.

"We have to empty the back out, help me, please." Harper said as she pulled the gifts and bags from the back, and handed them to Riley, who put them in the seat beside her.

"You're going to let strangers into the car? That's a bad idea. You can't let strangers into the car." Riley said nervously as Harper gave her an irritated look.

"Cut it out and help me, please." She said as she reached for the blanket in the middle seat.

"That's my blanket! That's for me!" Riley exclaimed as she reached for the blanket. "You're going to give my blanket to a stranger!"

"That's enough, stop being selfish and get into the front seat. I need this one flipped down so that we can get to Greyson."

"Who is…"

"Just listen to me for once in your life, will you? Front seat, now."

"Fine, Miss bossy pants." Riley said with a sigh as she moved toward the front. "And close that door! It's cold out there!"

Harper gave her a glare and turned around to see Richie approaching her slowly with Greyson. Grey's eyes were drooping, his legs were moving, but he had no traction on the ground, there was no way that his moving was helping Richie get him closer to her, he looked like he was completely out of it. "Are you ready?" Richie asked as he got closer to her, watching her wave him over as he moved closer.

"Try to turn him so we can pull him in backwards." Harper said as she watched Richie nod. He very carefully put his arms around his brother, and began to pull him backwards.

"You should think about losing some weight there, little brother." Richie whispered as he pulled him to the car and lifted him backwards gently onto the threshold of the back of the car.

"You should think about getting a new car." Greyson mumbled with a smirk as Richie couldn't help but chuckle as he laid Greyson on his back and pushed his legs lightly, to slide him into the back of the car. Once he was inside, Harper nodded and reached up for the hatch. Richie nodded and grabbed it, closing them into the warm, running car. He paused for a moment before moving toward the door of the car, a quick prayer on the tip of his tongue as he turned his head to where his brother had been laying. He the moved quickly to get the branches he had found for the brace, and Greyson and Harper's coat from the snow, hoping they weren't soaked through, for he knew that it was going to be a very long night, and there wasn't time to be cold.

* * *

 _Meredith lie in her bed staring down at her new daughter, her face was full of exhaustion and pride as she cradled her gently. Her sons would be visiting soon, and Derek had gone down the hallway to get her something to drink. She cradled her new daughter and kissed her tiny forehead as she slept peacefully in her arms._

 _As the door opened, she grinned, Cristina walked in slowly, peeking first. "You have her." Cristina said with a slight smile as Meredith nodded._

 _"Hurry, come in before Derek gets back." She said with a smile as Cristina walked across the floor in all her pregnant glory._

 _"Ah… another bald one." Cristina said with a laugh as Meredith giggled._

 _"Yes, but still perfect."_

 _"I hope mine isn't all wrinkly like that… ew."_

 _"Cristina…" Meredith laughed._

 _"Has it cried yet?"_

 _"She… has she cried yet." Meredith said with a shake of her head._

 _"I don't know, I was asking you." Cristina said, genuinely confused._

 _"You know, I think pregnancy did something to your brain." Meredith replied to her friend as Cristina rubbed her belly._

 _"I think pregnancy has done something to my brain." Cristina said as she ran her finger across the baby's fingertips. "Give me the little lump of Shepherd." She said as she reached down and glanced at Meredith as Meredith let her take the baby. "I now realize how disgusting that sounded."_

 _"I won't tell if you don't." Meredith giggled as she watched Cristina lift the baby into her arms, her tiny arms pushing into the air as her eyes opened slightly._

 _"Oh, look at you, so teeny and cute, not at all like your big brothers, those big old lumps of chatter. You're so sweet." She whispered as the baby cooed in her arms._

 _"And soon you'll have your own to cuddle and make fun of." Meredith laughed as Cristina shook her head._

 _"No… no, my friend. My children will be adorable. Not wrinkly and bald like that one." She said as she lifted the baby back into her mother's arms. "Fully clothed and potty trained, we've had the discussion." She said as Meredith laughed. "She's beautiful."_

 _"Thank you." Meredith said softly as she smiled at her friend._

 _"And did you settle on the name? I know Derek was going from Aaron to Zebulon for a while there."_

 _"Mariellis." She said with a smile as she watched Cristina's eyes light up._

 _"Did you come up with that, or Derek?"_

 _"Derek." She said as Cristina nodded. "Figures, trying to get in good with the boss." She laughed._

 _"Oh, you know he's already in good with the boss. She just won't tell him that."_

 _"Smart woman." Cristina said with a smile as she leaned on her friend's bed, and looked down at the baby._

* * *

"And then there was the time right after Mik was born, when Cristina demanded that she be wheeled down to the nursery with the baby, just to confirm that both babies were 'ugly'." Mark laughed.

"I was not ugly!" Mikala exclaimed from the back seat. "Take that back, Dad!"

"I wasn't ugly either!"

"You two weren't ugly, you were just little balls of snuggles and crying." Mark replied.

"Mom didn't think we were ugly either." Mikala argued.

"Nah, you know mom, she's got an opinion about everything." Mark rolled his eyes as he laughed. "Where the hell are we?" He asked Derek as Derek turned his head and shrugged.

"Hell if I know."

"Derek, this is really stupid."

"Mark." Derek sighed as his cell phone rang. He glared at his friend as he picked up the line. "Hello?"

"Did you find them yet?" Meredith asked nervously into the line.

"Not yet, sweetheart."

"Where are you?"

"We're a good distance away."

"You have cell phone service still." She said into the line. "How far?"

"See, when you ask me questions like that, it makes me think you're just trying to get me out of the house or something, like you don't want me near, like you don't love me anymore. Don't you love me anymore?" He teased.

"Find my boys, Derek." Meredith giggled as she sighed softly. "I'm doing better." She said softly.

"Good." Derek said as Mark rolled his eyes at him.

"How are the girls?"

"Oh, they haven't shut up since we started driving." Derek replied. "Say hi."

"HI MOM!" Both girls exclaimed as they laughed. Meredith's giggle was muffled, but they could hear it as Derek pulled the phone back to his ear.

"Take care of them, Derek."

"I was thinking of making human snow men out of them."

"Snow women." Mariellis exclaimed.

"Human snow… women." Derek mumbled as he rolled his eyes at his daughter in the rear view mirror.

"Just keep everyone safe and and just, thank you." Meredith said with a smile.

"So, let me know if Santa shows up, alright?"

"I will." She said softly. "I love you, Derek."

"I love you too, sweetheart." Derek replied as he hung up the phone.

"I love you too!" The two girls and Mark all exclaimed as they mocked Derek.

"You know, I should have done this alone." Derek said with a laugh as he continued to drive.

"What? And have all this fun to yourself? That'd be selfish." Mariellis exclaimed from the backseat as she and Mikala laughed.

"Oh, that snow woman idea is looking better and better every second!" Derek exclaimed with a laugh as the girls pretended to zip their lips and giggled as they went along.

* * *

Richie climbed into the middle seat of the car as he glanced back at Harper and Greyson. "How is he doing?" Richie asked, though he knew the answer was obvious.

"He's doing alright." Harper replied as she looked up at Richie. "What took you so long?"

"I had to get your coats and the sticks for the splint."

"I don't think we're going to do the splint." She said as she watched Greyson's pale face, the jaundice more visible in the dome light of the SUV, as he groaned and looked up at Richie. "He's in one place now and I don't want to cause him any more pain than we have to."

"Will it be alright?" Richie asked as he watched her eyes carefully for any deception. He saw that they were clear, and nervous, but otherwise truthful.

"It will be, as long as it stays in one place."

"What about my stomach?" Greyson groaned. "It hurts so much." He said as he reached down and touched his abdomen slightly as he turned his head.

"He looks awful." Richie whispered as he turned his head to see the little girl in the front seat watching him cautiously. "Hey." Richie said softly as he pulled his glove off his hand, he reached it gingerly to the little girl. "My name is Richie." He said politely as he gave her a half smile. She watched him for a moment and swallowed hard, her head moving slightly to the side so she could see Harper's face in the back, watching the exchange.

"Um…" She whispered softly.

"It's alright, I'm sorry we barged in on you guys." He said with a friendly tone. "If you shake my hand and tell me your name then we're not strangers anymore." He said as she raised her eyebrows.

"Really?" Riley asked.

"Yep." Richie said with a kind smile. "I'm Richie," He said again, tilting his head as he watched her reach her hand out quickly.

She grasped his hand tightly and shook it. "I'm Riley." She said as she pulled her hand away and stepped back.

"Oh goodness, thank you so much." Richie said sincerely. "I didn't think you wanted to be my friend." He said as he rolled his eyes, listening to the little girl giggle. "It's nice to meet you, Riley."

"Nice to meet you, Richie." She said softly. "Who is that?" Riley asked as she pointed to the back of the car and Richie's attention went to Greyson as Harper reached forward and hit the latch on the third seat in the SUV, sending it folding down.

"That's my brother, Greyson."

"Oh." Riley said softly as she moved forward slowly and watched Richie kneel slightly, leaning over the third seat as he looked down at his brother. He heard Riley come bounding from the front seat and lean over the third seat with him as they both looked on. "He's pretty hurt, huh?"

"He is…" Richie swallowed as they watched Greyson close his eyes tightly as he tried to ward away the pain, and Harper did her best to warm him up. "And we're going to have to try to figure out a way to get him help." Richie said as his eyes caught in Harper's, as they both asked one another the exact same question, and prayed that somehow, it would be answered soon.

Richie watched Harper closely as she tended to his brother. She pulled some gauze from the first aid kit and began cleaning the cuts to his face, watching him cringe as he flinched away from her. "Do you like to inflict pain or something?" Greyson mumbled as he groaned in pain.

"No." She said as she wiped another cut. "But you don't want these cuts to get infected, hold still." She said as she looked up at Richie as he looked on, and Riley, as she leaned in to watch as well. "Is he always this big of a baby?" She asked jokingly as Greyson grumbled.

"Yes." Richie replied as he leaned over and watched his brother. "But he's usually not hurt this bad either. How long have you guys been stuck here?"

"About a half hour." Harper said softly as she swallowed hard. "I was coming around the curve, and the tires just kept sliding, slipped us right into the ditch." She replied. "My father knows what way we were going and said if we didn't show up by eight, he'd come out looking for us, so I figured we were alright waiting until he came along, or a snowplow. We have a full tank of gas."

"And what if he didn't find you, Harper?" Richie asked, his voice calm and soft, not accusatory or mean, only curious.

"I want to check his abdomen." She whispered, ignoring Richie's question as she looked to him with nervous eyes. He knew she was scared, and he felt strangely comforted at her avoidance. I want to check to see if there's any swelling." She paused as she watched Richie listen carefully. "How are you feeling?" She asked, watching his eyes as they burned into hers for a moment, he swallowed hard.

"I'm fine." He said as he sighed. "I'm fine, I am."

"You're not going to be fine later." Harper said as she started pulling on Greyson's shirt, unbuttoning his flannel shirt.

"Excuse me?" Richie asked.

"Whiplash. You've probably got it pretty badly. Right now you have your adrenaline to keep you going, but the moment it slows down, you're going to have one hell of a neck ache." She explained.

"And what would you recommend for him?" Greyson asked as he gave her a wicked smile, watching the slow smirk on her face rise as she shook her head.

"You better watch it, little brother. Your life is in her hands, and I don't think it'd be a good idea to make her angry." Richie said as he chuckled, feeling his cheeks burn hot and his eyes averted from Harper's.

"Probably a massage. That'd make his neck feel a little better." Harper said nonchalantly as she lifted Greyson's t-shirt a little and raised her eyebrows at his smirk. "Excuse me." She said politely as she put her hand on Greyson's abdomen.

"Holy fucking J…grr…!" Greyson exclaimed in response to Harper's cold hands on his skin as she palpated his skin.

"Hey, watch the language." Richie said as he nodded toward Riley, who looked as if she were about to say something.

"Thank you." Riley said as she smiled at Richie.

"No problem." Richie replied. "Do you feel anything?" He asked Harper, watching her brow furrow as she continued touching his abdomen, concentration on her fingers moving softly across his skin as he flinched and cringed with each movement.

"We need to get him to a hospital." She said bluntly, her eyes filled with concern as she looked up at Richie.

"What's going on?" Greyson asked as Richie swallowed hard.

"He may have internal bleeding, I'm not sure, but the symptoms are indicating liver failure." She whispered. "Between the jaundice and… if I palpate right… there… it feels like the liver may be enlarged." She whispered.

"Liver failure? I'm only seventeen years old. I don't drink, why would I have liver failure?" Greyson exclaimed as he started to panic, trying to sit up on his good arm. "Richie, tell her that I don't drink. Tell her that I… I'm going to… I don't understand!" he said as his eyes started to fill with tears.

Harper lay him back gently. "Stop panicking, I could be wrong." She said as she shrugged. "I mean, you need to see a real doctor, we're really not going to know what's wrong until we get you to a hospital. There's no sense in freaking out." She said calmly.

"Yeah, no sense in freaking out." Richie said with a frustrated huff. "It's not like we're stuck on a mountain in the middle of a snowstorm or anything."

"Richie…" Riley whispered as she poked him lightly, sending his eyes to hers. "But we are stuck in a snowstorm." She whispered.

"Thank you, Riley." Richie said as he turned his head quickly to Harper. "We are stuck in a snowstorm, Harper. We're stuck, and he's… he's… he's really fu… he's really hurting right now, and what are we going to do? Huh? Are we going to sit here and watch him die here? Goddamn it!" He exclaimed as he slammed his fist down on the seat, he glanced to Riley as she shrugged.

"I'll let you have that one."

"Thank you." He said calmly. "I need to think." He said as he reached for the door.

"Richard!" Harper exclaimed as the door flew open.

"Richie!" Greyson exclaimed as he stepped out of the car and slammed the door behind him as they heard the crunching of his feet in the snow as he walked away into the darkness, without his coat and without a flashlight.

* * *

Harper sat for a moment thinking to herself as she tried not to think of Richie out wandering in the darkness. She looked down at Greyson and caught his eyes for a moment, and was about to ask him a question.

"He won't do anything stupid." Greyson grunted as he read the concern on her face.

"You're sure?" She asked as she turned her head to see Riley climbing into the front seat, running her hand over the window to clean away the steam, watching for Richie.

"Richie is always safe." Greyson whispered. "He doesn't take risks, he's always safe."

"You think he'll be alright out there?"

"I think he'll be alright." Greyson swallowed hard, the pain evident in his face. "Just… just let him think he'll be alright." He said softly. "Richie doesn't take risks." Greyson said again.

"Here…" Harper said softly as she reached for Greyson. "Let's try to get you a little more comfortable back here." She said softly as she attempted to keep herself busy, and not think of the other man, who was obviously in pain in this situation.


	5. Karma is a Bitch

Richard walked slowly through the darkness, turning the opposite direction of the car's headlights and walked toward his own car. The reflection of the lights on the trees sent an eerie shadow down the dark road, and he finally released the breath that he had been holding that was keeping him from screaming out in frustration. His feet crunched through the snow as he heard the muffled calls of Harper and Greyson as he walked away from the car.

He walked through the cold, his flannel shirt keeping him as warm as it could, and he stepped up to the settling mess of his own car sitting on its side against the tree that it had smashed into. "Goddamned, stupid idiot." He whispered as he reached out and touched the freezing metal of his car as he watched the snow fall onto his skin, melting on contact as he sighed. He stood there for several minutes, allowing the sting of the frozen metal seep into his skin, sending small shots of pain into his body that reminded him of the reality of the situation. "Your brother is dying… and it's your fault and… you're standing out here… in the snow, freezing to death." He whispered as he pulled his hand back and flexed his fingers, feeling the sting of the cold on his skin. "Why the hell did you bring this car, anyway? Huh? Why the hell would you do that? Dad warned you not to do it. He told you not to drive in the snow in the corvette, and what do you do? Do you listen to him? No… no… because you're an idiot!" Richie exclaimed as he kicked at the car, the solid metal sending a shock of pain vibrating through his body. "Fucking GODDAMNED IDIOT!" He exclaimed as he slammed his fist down on the car. He leaned his head forward, his skin touching the frozen metal of the car for a moment as he took a slow deep breath, releasing it slowly, swallowing hard.

He stood trembling in the freezing air, the wind whipping across his skin relentlessly as the snowflakes fell from the sky with an unyielding slap. He shivered and stared into the darkness, pulling his arms up, he rubbed his hands across his biceps as he tried to conjure up some warmth. His thoughts were on his brother, lying in the back of the car, on his mother and how worried she must be about them by now, since she hadn't heard from them since earlier that day. The darkness was swallowing him up, and there didn't seem to be any relief in sight. He lifted his phone out of his pocket and stared at the empty signal bar, and the time. It was nearly eight o'clock, and he knew that his mother was probably nervous wreck, sending out his father to search for them, calling time and again on the phone, not enjoying her Christmas eve at all, making herself sick with worry. "If you weren't such a stupid idiot, you wouldn't have gotten yourself into this mess." He whispered to himself as he felt someone walk up behind him.

"You're not an idiot." Harper's voice fluttered softly through the air, much like one of the soft, white snowflakes fluttering to the ground all around them. Richie cringed as he listened to the sound of her feet walking through the snow. He wished he could melt into his car and disappear into a small pool of water, like the snowflakes landing on the metal of the car, sliding down in little rivulets to the ground. "Richard?" She said softly.

"You don't have to come looking for me, I'll come back." He said softly.

"I know." She replied. "Greyson said that you wouldn't do anything stupid or anything." She shrugged. "But I think he's… he's really worried about you." She whispered.

"There's nothing to worry about." Richard replied. "Besides, I already did my stupid thing. Tell him that there's nothing to worry about. Tell him that I'm fine. Tell him that. Just tell him that." Richie mumbled as he swallowed hard, tears coming to his eyes as he clenched his fist. He was trying so hard to stay strong, but it was so hard.

"You need to tell him that." She said softly. "He's not going to believe me. He needs to hear you say that. He's scared."

"I'm scared." Richie swallowed. "If I stay away from him, he won't see it. I'm just… I'm just thinking." Richie whispered.

"He already knows you're scared…so standing out in the cold is pointless. Come on, come sit in the car with us. A snow plow or my dad or something. Someone will be coming up the road soon."

"Yes, because this road is a regular highway, and we've seen at least… NO cars so far." Richie snapped as he turned his head away from her.

"Listen." She said as she stepped up to him and pushed his shoulder slightly, to make him face her. She pushed her body in front of his and looked into his eyes as he gave her a sorrowful look. "Don't play the pity card, Richard. Your brother is hurt, okay? He's hurt, and you're out here acting like it's all your fault. He needs you right now, and it doesn't matter whose fault it is, alright. All you can do is support him and hold his hand."

"Don't you understand?" Richie asked as he sighed. "It hurts me that I can't do anything to help him right now."

"But you can!" She exclaimed as her eyes burned into his for a moment. "You can do something! You can be there for him!"

"Being there for him isn't going to do anything, Harper!" He exclaimed in her face as she scowled angrily at him. "I can't help him, Harper! I can't get him to a goddamned hospital!" He exclaimed as he watched her take a step back. "I'm… I'm sorry." He whispered as he watched the slight twinge of fear in her eyes. "I'm sorry." He said again as he turned suddenly and walked around his car to the snow bank and started to climb up the side of the hill where the tree was.

"Where are you going?" She asked as she followed him around the car. "Richard? Where are you going?" She asked.

"He is going to need his medication soon." Richie muttered as he climbed up the snow bank to the car, sitting atop it, he looked down into the darkness of the vehicle and turned his head to see Harper following him.

"Medication? What medication?" Harper asked as she climbed the hill carefully, watching as he sat with his legs in the car preparing to lift himself inside. "Where are you going?"

"I have to get his bag." Richie said as lifted himself down into the car.

"Richard, that's not a good idea, you're going to cut yourself on the glass!" She called as she pulled herself onto the car and looked down. "Richard, please be careful."

"I'll be careful." He said. "But he needs his medication and dry clothes, there's probably some dry clothes in the bag."

"Good idea!" Harper said with a smile, a slight bit of hope in her voice as she watched him move around inside the car.

She listened to him rustling in the car and after several minutes, saw something coming up in her direction. "Here, grab it, don't let it sit in the snow." He said as she nodded and grabbed Greyson's bag, swinging it onto her shoulder, she watched him go back in.

"Now what are you doing?"

"I have to get my mother's Christmas gift." He said quickly. "I have to get my things, you don't have to wait for me, it's okay."

"No." She said softly. "I'll wait for you." She said as she watched him within the car as best as she could see, waiting and watching as he searched for his bags.

* * *

Riley watched as Harper climbed from the car and closed the door behind her. With a emphatic 'stay there, and don't move', she listened just as well as any five year old listens and climbed farther into the back of the car. "Hey." She said at Greyson, whose head turned to see her looking down at him.

"Hey." Greyson said softly.

"Does it hurt?" Riley asked as she stared down at the stranger curiously.

"Yes." He said softly as he cringed at the pain.

"Like how much?" She asked as she watched him watch her.

"Have you ever gotten your finger pinched in a door?"

"Um… yeah…"

"Well, it's like getting your whole arm stuck in a door." Greyson replied.

"Oh goodness, Owie, ow, ow!" She said as she watched him more. "My sister says your liver hurts."

"I don't know if that's what it is." Greyson said as he tried to forget what Harper had said to her brother as she took care of his arm. "I don't know if it's my liver." He grunted.

"My sister is going to be a doctor some day, so if she says its your liver, its probably your liver. If it's your liver that's hurt, do you think they'll make you eat liver to get better?" She asked as Greyson watched her honest question.

"I hope not." He whispered as she smiled.

"Yeah, that'd be gross. I'd rather be sick than eat liver."

"Me too." Greyson replied.

"Where are you from?" She asked as she leaned forward more and watched Greyson watch her carefully.

"Boston." He replied.

"Boston? I've been there. Dad lives near Boston, Mommy doesn't."

"You're going to visit with your dad?" Greyson whispered, trying to keep the conversation going so that he could just stay awake and alert.

"Yeah… he's a police man and mommy and daddy don't live together anymore. Harper goes to school and I stay with mommy most times, but I was visiting daddy for Christmas and I don't know if Santa is going to make it to daddy's house, but you know, being stuck out here in the snow, what if Santa doesn't know where I am? I'm almost there, but not quite is he going to come in the window and leave my gifts here? I mean, what's gonna happen? Will he just forget about me? Will Santa forget me?" She asked as Greyson watched the little girl become slightly upset at the thought of no Santa Claus, he watched tears come to her eyes as she asked her questions, looking down at the stranger.

"Oh, Santa's a smart guy. He has one of these tracker things on his sled and he can find a kid anywhere in the world."

"So you think he'll leave my presents here?"

"I think he knows where you're going. I'm sure your parents sent him a schedule."

"A schedule?"

"Yeah… like an itinerary… like… you know, your mommy and daddy had to fill out a form."

"Really?"

"Yeah, they had to fill out a form." Greyson said as he tried to figure out if she understood what he was saying, and if she even believed him.

"Huh." She said as she thought about it. "That's wild." She nodded.

"Yeah." Greyson nodded his head and chuckled. "Wild…" He said with a laugh as the door suddenly opened and Richie stood beside the car. He held his hand out for Harper and helped her inside the car.

"Thank you." She whispered softly as she climbed into the car.

"My pleasure." Richie said as he lifted his bag and Greyson's bag into the car, climbing in after them.

"Harper." Riley said as she tilted her head and sat up from where she was talking to Greyson.

"What are you doing back there? I told you to stay in the front seat." Harper asked as Riley scooted quickly into the front of the car.

"I was, I was, but Mister Grey was lonely." She said as she turned around on the seat and looked into the back as Harper sat down on the middle seat and slid over. Richie closed the door behind him and looked back at his brother as he slid into the seat beside Harper.

"Did you two straighten out your differences? Kiss and make up?" Greyson teased from the back of the car.

"You are in no position to be making jokes, Greyson." Richie raised his eyebrows as he didn't laugh, making Greyson laugh, and also hearing the giggle of Harper beside him. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm about the same." He whispered, his voice a bit gravely as he coughed slightly. "Cold."

"Harper, guess what!" Riley said from the front seat as her sister turned her head to face her little sister. "Mister Grey said that Santa will be at Daddy's house because Mommy and Daddy filled out a form." She said as she watched her sister's face for disbelief.

"That's right." Harper said as she nodded and glanced back at Greyson and gave him a confused glance and a slight smirk. "They filled out a form." She nodded as Riley grinned happily.

"Good, I don't want to miss out on Santa." She said as her eyes panned the two new bags in the car, her eyes catching sight of something in one of them and and they lit up as she gasped, her jaw dropping as her eyes widened.

"What?" Richie asked as the little girl swallowed hard and turned in her seat, plopping down, she giggled.

"Nothing." She giggled.

"You're silly." Harper said as she sighed and looked back at Greyson, before glancing up to her sister and then to Richie as he moved the bags around. She then caught sight of what her sister saw in the bag and raised her eyebrows at Richie.

"What?" Richie asked as he looked down and realized what had caught both of their attention and his cheeks instantly turned red as he saw the red and white fur from the Santa Claus costume peeking from the inside of the bag. "Crap." He whispered as his ears began to burn, and he pushed it into the bag tighter, zipping it securely as he glanced to Harper. "It was supposed to be a gift for my mother…"

"You… you know…put it…"

"Yeah." He said with a sigh. "For… my cousins… it's just a tradition."

She leaned over slightly and glanced to see her sister peeking into the back seat with one eye as she giggled. "You may have someone thinking that you are the real thing." Harper said with a laugh as Richie turned to see the little girl's twinkling eye as she turned quickly and the seat and giggled to herself happily.

* * *

 **9:00 PM-**

Meredith sat staring at the Christmas tree. Most of the conversation had slowed and she had talked to Derek several times, but she still couldn't get the feeling of dread to disappear from her stomach. "Meri." Marion said softly as she sat beside Meredith as she continued to stare at the tree. "Meri, they're fine, they're smart boys."

"If Derek has any sense, he'll come back here." Ellis said from the other side of Meredith. "Those girls are probably driving him batty by now."

"Oh, Mark is there too." Cristina chimed in. "They're going batty together."

"I've always thought teamwork was the way to go with that." Ellis smiled as Meredith turned her head to the two of them and scowled.

"I'm glad you think this is a time for joking around." She said with a frustrated sigh.

"Meredith, we're just trying to show you that it's alright to have fun. it's alright to relax. There is a storm moving through and the boys are probably just stopping to let it pass. They're probably out in the mountains and not within cell range. You have to calm down."

"I don't want to calm down. I want my boys, both of them." She said with huff. "All three of them." She whimpered.

"I'm sure Mari would love to hear that." Ellis said as she teased her daughter a little as Meredith sighed.

"She's the only one I don't worry about." Meredith said truthfully.

Nancy walked over and sat down across from Meredith as she tilted her head and smiled. "Is your egg nog not strong enough?" She asked as Marion laughed.

"Nancy!" She exclaimed.

"What? I'm just trying to help my sister out!" She said with a laugh as Meredith smiled and laughed a little. "There you go, come on. You know what? Have a little something to drink with us, the littlest ones are in bed. We'll keep warm and you'll keep some worrying so much. I'm sure there are tons of things to catch up on."

"Nancy, I shouldn't drink anything. What if something happened? What if…"

"Then you'll be better off dealing with it a little tipsy than you would be not. And if not, you'll fall asleep and we'll let you know when we find something out."

Meredith sat for a moment and looked at her sister in law. Her eyes passed from her mother in law who nodded her head toward the kitchen door and her own mother who gave Meredith a slight smile as she thought about it.

"Come on, Mer, let's get tipsy." Cristina said as she gave her friend a friendly nudge.

"But Derek. I sent him out, and he's…"

"He's a great driver." Marion said with a nod as she took Meredith's hand. "Let's go get something to drink, come on."

"I…"

"Meredith." Ellis said in a stern tone as she reached for her daughter's hand. "No more excuses." She said, as she tugged on her daughter's hand and stood up and Meredith stood up reluctantly, letting her mother pull her along as everyone clapped. Meredith's cheeks turned red with embarrassment as she realized how visible her nervousness was as she laughed too and disappeared into the kitchen with the other girls.

Derek and Mark drove in another circle, their search had brought them back to town as Derek slowed near the ice skating rink. "So we didn't find them." Mark sighed.

"No." Derek sighed.

"Are we going to go back empty handed?" Mark asked as he looked into the back seat. The two girls had fallen asleep. Being in the car that long always got to them, but they had a long day, and there was no keeping them awake.

"We can't go home yet." Derek sighed.

"Then what are we going to do?" Mark asked as Derek pulled into the parking lot.

"We'll just sit here for a short time, then we'll head back, let the girls sleep a little bit." Derek shrugged. "You didn't have anything going on tonight except sleep, right?"

"Yeah, just sleep." Mark sighed and shook his head.

"Well let's just sit here for a bit, then we'll take one more ride around town. Then we'll give up." Derek said as Mark nodded as they settled into a parking space and relaxed for a few minutes in the warm, heated car.

* * *

 **9:30 PM-**

Richie sat in the middle seat, his head turned to the side slightly as he watched Greyson rest in the back. They had helped him warm up as much as they could, wrapping him in blankets and Richie helped him change into a pair of dry pants as Harper kept Riley busy in the front of the car. When they all settled in to keep warm, Richie noticed that the snow had finally stopped falling, and they were still packed fairly well in the snow bank. The snow on the car kept it insulated, and Richie thought it best that they turn the car off for a little while and preserve gasoline, using blankets and warm clothing to keep them warm as they tried to keep warm.

Richie decided that they should keep watch for a passing car or truck, or snowplow that was bound to be passing down the street sometime in the night, and for the first shift, he agreed that he'd stay awake.

"Are you sure?" Harper asked as she held her arms out for her sister and pulled her into her arms, wrapping her with a blanket as she watched Richie nod his head.

"Absolutely." He said softly as he nodded his head. "I don't usually sleep well anyway. It goes back to when I was a lot younger, my parents being on call." He shrugged.

"On call?"

"They're surgeons, both of them. Sometimes we'd have to get up in the middle of the night to go to the hospital with them. Or one would be called in. It was always hard to fall back asleep after a pager went off." He shrugged as she nodded.

"What kind of surgeons?" Harper asked softly as she glanced back to Greyson, who had slipped into a soft slumber. "If you don't mind, I'm not trying to be nosy." She said as Richie shook his head.

"Oh, no problem. They're neurosurgeons, both of them."

"Wow." She said as she smiled. "Big time."

"Yeah, real brainiacs." He smirked nervously as she giggled. "You're in medical school." Richie whispered.

"Yep." She nodded. "I'm just finishing up. I have one more year, then I start my internship." She said with a shy smile.

"Any idea what you want to go into? Where you'd like to end up?" Richie asked as she shrugged and cuddled her sister into him.

"I don't know." She shrugged. "I'd like to go to Boston, or New York."

"Boston has a great program." Richie nodded his head as he watched her give him a sideways glance.

"Oh yeah?" She asked as she watched him blush a little in the darkness of the car. "Your parents wouldn't happen to work in Boston, would they?" She giggled as he looked up to the roof for a moment and felt his cheeks burning as he smiled and shook his head.

"Yes." He said as he laughed. "I was just trying to make conversation." He chuckled as she giggled, feeling her own cheeks burning.

"It's alright." She laughed shyly as he sat awkwardly beside her, watching her shift around trying to find a comfortable spot with her sister cradled in her arms as the little girl slept in her arms.

"Here." He said as he reached his arm up onto the back of the seat and tapped his shoulder. "You can rest your head here." He whispered. She looked into his eyes in the darkness, seeing no mischievousness, only sincerity. "I'll behave." He said tenderly with a shy smile. "I promise."

"You're sure?" She asked as she raised her eyebrows slightly and watched a soft smile on his lips.

"I promise." He said with a smile as he tilted her head. "You can trust me." He said softly. "We need to keep warm somehow." He shrugged.

"Okay." She whispered softly as she watched his eyes for a second longer. She then turned slightly and tipped her body back onto his, leaning her head on his shoulder. After a moment, she felt his arm drop slightly onto her shoulder, pulling her in closer to him as he leaned his head on hers and held her securely as she felt a flood of warmth invade her body. She smiled slightly at his warmth as she closed her eyes, comforted by this stranger's embrace, she was able to slip into more secure and comfortable sleep than she had in a very, very long time.

* * *

 **10:00 PM-**

The four of them had been sitting in the car comfortably for nearly an hour before the nighttime chill began to creep in at them. Richie took a very slow, deep breath, the scent of Harper's shampoo floated into his nose and soothed him slightly, he released the breath again as he suddenly felt her move against him. The car was mostly dark, the reflection of the moon on the snow outside sent shadows of blue through the car, but at least the sky had cleared. Richie's breath caught in his throat as Harper moved slightly in his arms, not moving completely from him, but turning her head up for her eyes to meet his.

"Were you smelling my hair?" She asked sleepily, her voice a raspy whisper as she watched his eyes dart from her. She couldn't see his full reaction, but she was sure that his cheeks were turning red with embarrassment. "Hey…" She said sleepily as she sat up slightly. "It's alright."

"I was not smelling your hair." Richie said as he shook his head. "I was just breathing." He shrugged.

"Mmhmm…" She said with a soft smile as she looked down at her sister. Riley lay in her arms sleeping soundly, her mouth slightly open as she turned her head into Harper, trying to keep warm in her gentle slumber.

"I was not smelling your hair." Richie replied again a little louder as he swallowed hard. "I wasn't." He said again.

"I think you may be protesting a little too much." She said with a sly smile as she felt him pull away from her slightly as she sat up and turned slightly to face him, shifting her sleeping sisters in her arm as he opened his mouth to reply.

"I'm not a creep." He replied, glancing to his brother to see that he was sleeping. "I'm not…" He said softly.

"I didn't say you were a creep." She said with a slight giggle in her voice. "And I didn't say that I minded that you were smelling my hair, which you were." She said as he shook his head.

"I was not." He said as he looked up at the roof of the car for a moment, trying not to react to the way she was smiling at him, he turned his head toward the window. "Is anyone going to drive down this road?" He said as he sighed.

"Oh, good segue!" She teased as Richie turned and gave her a faux glare.

"You're still on my list." He snapped as he turned his head back toward his brother.

"Your list?" She asked with a bit of a humored giggle.

"Yes, the bad one." He said as she laughed. "What? He said as he glanced back to her. "It goes along with the costume." He said, nodding toward his bag as she giggled a little more.

"Well, that explains why you were watching me while I was sleeping." She teased.

"I was not!" He exclaimed, as Riley shifted in her arms and Richie covered his mouth with his hand and Harper laughed.

"Your face must be so red right now." She teased as Richie reached for the door handle.

"I need some air." He said as he felt her hand grab his, pulling it from the handle.

"Don't open the door. Don't go. Don't run away from me, I'm just having fun. I'm not trying to embarrass you." She said innocently as she kept her hand on his. "Please?"

"Are you going to keep teasing me?" Richie asked as he turned his head toward her, raising his eyebrows.

"Probably." She nodded her head. "But it's only because I trust you. and I think you're nice. And hell, we're stuck in a car in the middle of nowhere. What's a little fun?" She asked.

"I'm just scared." He sighed.

"Another reason to laugh." She said, seeing the look on his face, she held her hand up and grinned. "Not at you, not at you." She defended. "To laugh, you know, make light of things. Keep us warm. Keep us from being too scared." She said as suddenly, a violent cough came from behind them and they turned to see Greyson trying to pull himself up.

"Grey, lay down." Richie said as he turned and moved over the third seat, hanging over his brother as Greyson continued to try to sit up, his cough becoming louder and more violent. "Greyson, lay down, you have to lay down."

"Don't tell me what to do!" Greyson exclaimed as he swatted at his brother's hand. "Get away from me!" He exclaimed.

"Grey, don't do this." Richie whispered.

"Fuck off, Richie!" He exclaimed angrily as he shoved Richie's arm from him and tried to sit up. "What the hell is going on? Where am I? Why is my…Goddamn it!" He exclaimed as he tried to move his arm. "Holy shit! My arm is broken!"

"Greyson, stop… Lay back down."

"Richie! My arm is broken! My arm! It hurts!" He exclaimed as he started to panic. "Richie! Help me! I think they kidnapped us. I think they're going to kill us! Where are we? Richie?" He whispered as Richie climbed into the back of the car and tried to hold his brother before he said anything more.

"Grey, it's alright, just relax…"

"NO! I can't relax! She's going to kill us! Get her! She wants us dead!" He exclaimed as he raised his good arm and pointed at Harper, watching the fear in her eyes as Richie held him down, whispering in his ear.

"Greyson, I swear to God, if you don't stop this…"

"God isn't going to save you! You're going to hell, and I'm going to heaven! You're going to hell, Richie!" Greyson said as he pulled at his brother as Richie tried to hold him. "Let go of me! Let go of me, I need to get out of here! I need to get out of here!" He exclaimed as he suddenly started to cough again, only more violently. "I need… I need to get out of here." He coughed again and again as he struggled weakly against Richie. "I need… to get out of here…" He muttered as he continued to cough, sending droplets of blood against his brother's arm. "Oh my God… I'm bleeding…" He said as he looked at Richie. "I'm bleeding… Richie, I'm dying…. I'm… I'm…"

"You're not dying!" Richie exclaimed as his brother stared at him blankly for a moment. "Greyson?" He said softly. "Greyson, are you there? Are you alright?"

"I don't want to die!" He said as suddenly his eyes began to water. "Don't let me die!" He broke down as Richie held him in his arms as his eyes closed tightly and Greyson began to sob against him. "Don't let me die, Richie!" He sobbed as Richie looked toward the top of the car once again, blood spattered on his face, his eyes filled with fear and tears, and terror as suddenly the car was filled with light.

"A snow plow!" Harper exclaimed as she lifted her sister into her arms, against her body, as she reached forward and jumped out the door into the cold winter night, and out of Richie's view as he listened to her screaming for help, as after just a moment, there was the sound of an idling vehicle as the plow stopped.

* * *

 **11:30 PM-**

Meredith sat in front of the Christmas tree, her eyes stared into the dark depths of the tree, the lights sparkled in her eyes as the ornaments dangled freely from its branches. Most everyone had headed to bed, getting ready to prepare for the annual gift haul from the basement. There was no sleep in her eyes, there was no yawn in her lungs, only a solid stare at that Christmas tree.

Derek had not returned yet, though he had called several times to check in, and she had had enough egg nog to calm her nerves to an extent, though she could still feel the anxiety in her heart. She swallowed hard as she glanced to her side, seeing movement out of the corner of her eye, she recognized her mother's stance as she stepped closer to the Christmas tree. "I thought everyone was going to sleep." Meredith whispered delicately.

"Everyone is going to bed." Ellis replied softly as she watched her daughter continue to stare into the tree. "I'm not very tired, I thought I'd stay up with you." She said softly.

"I'm fine." Meredith replied as she swallowed hard, her eyes focusing on the Christmas ornaments as they sparkled in the lights of the tree.

"You're not fine, Meredith." Ellis shook her head. "You're slightly inebriated, but always far from fine."

"Thank you, Mother." Meredith said as she glared up at her mother standing above her.

"You don't like hearing the truth, but you know that it is so. It's eating you up inside that he's sick."

"You would be the same way if…"

"I am the same way, Meredith." Ellis said. "But I'm not going to say that I'm fine. I'm not about to try to convince people that I'm fine. I'm too old and too frail to be making such big lies, and you're making yourself older by the minute with all of the worries that you're pushing to the back of your mind. You're not fine."

"Fine!" Meredith exclaimed, lowering her voice immediately as she jumped to her feet. "Fine… fine… I'm not fine! Okay? I'm not fine! I'm a goddamned basket case!" She whispered angrily. "I'm not fine because my baby boy is trying to kill himself, and there is nothing that I can do for him!" She said as suddenly the shrill sound of Ellis' pager sounded. "Oh great!" Meredith said as she shook her head and swung her hand in frustration. "This is just great. This is going to make my Christmas all the better, having to cart your ass back to the city on Christmas morning. Merry Christmas, I have to leave and go take care of other people's families while mine falls apart!" Meredith ranted as Ellis read through the message on her pager, her brow furrowing as she lifted her eyes to Meredith's, acting as if she hadn't heard a word of her daughter's tirade.

"You're going to have to excuse me, I have to take this." Ellis said in a sterile tone as she turned on her heel and rushed out of the room, leaving Meredith standing slack jawed and angry beside the Christmas tree as she disappeared around the corner.

Derek sighed as he drove toward his mother's house. They had driven around longer than they had anticipated and even Mark had nodded off in the passenger seat. He turned onto his mother's street as suddenly, the sound of his pager screamed out, making him jump. "Damn it, I said I didn't want to be paged unless it was an emergency." He said as he pulled the car over to the side of the road and glanced to Mark as he grumbled and glared at Derek. "Don't look at me like that." Derek said as he shook his head and pulled his pager from his belt and lifted it to read the message.

Mark couldn't read the pager, but he watched Derek's expression disappear and his breath caught in his throat. "What?" Mark asked curiously as he watched Derek turn his head slowly toward him. "Derek? What is it?"

"We have to go get Ellis." He said as he suddenly slammed the car into drive and pushed down on the gas, sending the wheels sliding in the ice as he drove quickly down the street toward his mother's house as Mark watched him clench his jaw.

"Are they alright?" Mark whispered as Derek slammed on the brake as they slid halfway down the driveway.

"I don't know." Derek said as he jumped from the car. "Get the girls inside." He said as after a moment, the door slammed and Derek sprinted toward the house.

Derek jogged up the steps of the porch as the front door opened and Ellis stepped out onto the porch. "What do you know?" Derek asked as he glanced back to Mark who was rousing the girls in the back seat.

"I was paged, and given a number to a hospital about forty minutes outside of town." She said softly. "I called them and they have indicated that they have just admitted two people that have insisted on having me contacted. I'm assuming it is Richie and Grey, but they were unable to give me their location within the hospital. I've been trying to call Richie's phone, but there has been no answer. There wasn't any other message at the hospital other than that we'll be contacted." She said with a sigh.

"What's the name of the hospital?" Derek asked as Mark walked up the stairs, glancing to Derek as the two sleepy girls dragged down the path. Mark stopped and opened the door for the girls, standing by as Derek looked at him anxiously as the girls walked through the door into the house.

"Derek, you can't just go out there. You don't know if it's the boys. You don't know what shape they're in. You don't know that they're…" Ellis whispered.

"What is the name of the hospital, Ellis." Derek said seriously, his voice was deep with concern. "Where is Meredith?"

"She went upstairs about ten minutes ago." Ellis replied. "She's upset with me."

"Did she know that you were paged?"

"She knows that I was paged, but I made no indication that it had anything to do with the boys."

"Good." Derek said as he sighed. "Now what was the name of the hospital, Ellis. Because if you don't tell me now, I'll push you down and grab your pager. Don't make me push down an old woman on Christmas." He said as he reached his hand out to her, waiting for her to reply.

"There is no need to be violent, Doctor Shepherd." Ellis said with an irritated glare. "I'm going with you." She said as she turned and walked into the house.

Derek released an irritated huff as Mark shook his head. "She's got you by the balls, man." Mark said as he shook his head.

"First of all, don't remind me. Second of all, she's my mother in law. Could you use a different analogy, please?" Derek grumbled as he walked into the house and immediately walked up the stairs.

Derek watched as his daughter and Mikala slipped into their rooms, and he slipped into the darkened room where he knew he'd find Meredith. The lights were off, and he paused by the door.

"You didn't find them." Her voice was soft and broken, high and sad.

"Are you crying?" He whispered.

"No." She whimpered.

"You liar." Derek said as he moved across the room blindly, his foot touching the bed as he fell across it, not knowing where Meredith was, but landing right beside her.

"I'm not a liar." She whimpered.

"You're crying."

"I'm not crying." She sniffled.

"Don't cry." he said softly as he held his arm to her and wrapped it securely around her.

"My boys." She sighed into his shoulder.

"We heard from them." Derek said, trying to keep his voice even and calm as he held her, he felt her hand push against him.

"You heard from them?" She asked, her spirits lifted suddenly as she tried to make out his features in the darkness of the room, the moon's blue light. She couldn't tell what his eyes were saying to her, and that luckily worked to Derek's advantage.

"They stopped someplace for the night." He said softly as he kissed her nose.

"They're alright? What did they say? I wanted them here for Christmas morning." She said softly.

"I know, I know, but the snow has been falling pretty steadily. It's better that they stop someplace warm." He said as he cleared his throat slightly.

"What?" She whispered as she swallowed hard, watching Derek's brow furrow in the darkness, she could sense the tension in the room. "What's…"

"Your mother mentioned that she was paged." Derek said softly. "She wants me to take her back tonight." He whispered.

"Derek…"

"I know, I know. She had a bit of a complication with a patient, there was a confrontation with one of the interns. Nothing too severe, but she wanted some help with it."

"This Christmas is turning into the worst ever." She grumbled sadly as she whimpered at Derek.

"Oh…" he said softly as he ran his hand over her cheek softly. "Its not the worst Christmas. Remember the Christmas when we were separated?" He whispered. "Do you remember that Christmas?"

"Mmm…" She grumbled into his hand as she tilted her head forward.

"That was the worst Christmas ever." He whispered. "This? This is not the worst Christmas ever." He said softly. "Your mom is getting ready to go. There isn't any more snow. I want you to sleep, and I'll be here by morning."

"Derek, you haven't slept."

"There will be time for that, I'm sure." Derek whispered as he kissed her lips softly. "Now you get some rest." He said softly.

"I love you." She whispered softly as she watched him in the moonlight as he stood up.

"I love you too." He said softly as he walked around the bed. He grabbed her foot as he walked by, just to hear her squeal out with defensive laughter.

"Don't do that!" She squeaked as he laughed nervously.

"Get some sleep." He said softly. "We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow." He said as he walked out of the room and closed the door behind him, breathing a sigh of relief as he looked to the heavens for a little strength before he made his way down the hallway toward the stairs.

* * *

 **12:24 AM- December 25**

"Did you get any more information?" Derek asked as he watched Ellis on the cell phone as she listened to the nurse explaining something to her.

"Hmm… yes… So he's in the waiting room? No, no,We will be there soon, just make sure he's alright. Okay. And my other grandson, Greyson, you said he was being taken for some tests." Ellis asked.

"What's going on, Ellis?" Derek asked as she threw him a glare. "Come on…"

"Hmm… uh huh…. Yes… okay…" Ellis said softly as she nodded.

"Ellis…"

"Okay, right… no, no… he's not allergic to any medications."

"Ellis, what is going…"

"Excuse me for a second." She said into the phone as she turned to Derek. "Do you want me to punch you in the head?" She asked him as his eyes widened in surprise. "Just be quiet for ten seconds so that I can get some information. If you're patient, I'll share." She said indignantly as she sighed and put the phone back to her ear. "Alright, go ahead." She said as she listened for a couple more seconds, nodding her head and affirming the things that the person on the other line was saying. "We're about ten minutes out, we will be there shortly." She said with a sigh as she looked up at Derek. "There was a car accident."

"You said Richie is in the waiting room, what about Grey?"

"His injuries were more extensive, and he's not being very cooperative."

"Is he alright?"

"They took him for an MRI and a CT scan." She said softly. "They wouldn't tell me anything else over the phone.

"Well why the hell not? You're Ellis fucking Grey!" He exclaimed angrily.

"Yes, but that claim doesn't mean much to a nurse who is trying to pay back her student loans by working the midnight shift on Christmas at a hospital in the middle of nowhere, and has protocol and procedures to follow so she doesn't lose her job."

"Says you." Derek grumbled as he continued to drive, his concentration centered on the road ahead of them. "And since when do you care about protocol?" He muttered to himself.

"Since we have a lot of bad karma to deal with for lying to Meredith." Ellis replied.

"Good call." Derek said as he swallowed, trying to ignore the horrible nervous feeling he had growing in his belly.


	6. They're Here

Richie paced back and forth in the emergency room, his body was finally warming up and his brother had been whisked off to have an MRI and CT done. "Richard, you have to calm down." Harper said as she held her sister to her as she watched him walk back and forth. "Richard?" She said softly.

"No." Richie said as he shook his head. "I can't calm down. I can't calm down. I can't… I can't!" He said as he shook his head and breathed deeply. "I paged her, and… and its not going to do any good. My phone is dead, and my brother is lying on a gurney somewhere in this hospital with a broken arm and a liver something or other, coughing up blood, screaming like a lunatic, and you're telling me to calm down! You're telling me to calm down!" He exclaimed as he watched the nervous look on her face turn to a stubborn glare.

"You're making everyone around us nervous." She whispered as she noticed that other people in the waiting room were watching him. "They're going to tie you down to a bed if you don't sit down and relax." She said as she watched him walk past her again. "Richard, sit down!"

"I am not going to sit down!" He exclaimed, glancing up to see everyone staring at him. "Where is your father? I thought he was going to pick you up or something. He can get you out of my goddamned face." He grumbled as he glared at her.

"My father is on his way."

"Good." Richie said with an irritated growl.

She took a very slow calming breath as she watched his glare, and tried to put herself in his situation, choosing to ignore his arrogant and angry attitude and words. "Who did you page, Richard? Your mother?"

"My grandmother. My mother would flip out. I can't do that to her."

"I thought your mother was a doctor." She replied.

"She is, but so is my grandmother. She'll know what to do." Richie breathed in slowly, still pacing, Harper found that talking to him seemed to calm him. "I need some answers." He puffed as he walked toward the counter. "I need to check on my brother. My brother was taken inside, and I need to check on him."

"Sir, you're going to have to calm down." The nurse at the counter said softy.

"Greyson Shepherd, can you check on him please? Can you please check on him? Let me know if he's alright, I need to know that he's alright, please?" He said nervously as he continued to pester the nurse.

"I'll let you know as soon as we know something. Why don't you sit down over there and we'll call you when we know something." She said softly. As she said this, a nurse walked up behind her and whispered in her ear, looking up at Richie.

"What is it? Is he alright? What happened?" He asked as he glanced to Harper as she rocked her sister in her arms.

"Your brother seems to be having an episode of some kind." She said softly. "He's refusing medical attention. He is asking for you." She said as she nodded toward the door. "We'll take you to him." She said as she nodded toward the door.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" Richie said quickly as he turned toward the door. He glanced to Harper as she watched him head toward the door. "Are you coming with me, or what?" He asked as Harper nodded and stood up with Riley, quickly making her way toward the door as Richie grabbed her hand, pulling her along with him as they followed the nurse through the door and down the hallway.

Richie gripped Harper's hand as they marched down the hallway. He didn't know why he felt that he needed her there, but he didn't want to do this alone, and his irrational thought was that he needed someone rational and calm in the situation nearby. In short, Harper was keeping him sane, and he knew it, and he appreciated it. He squeezed her hand lightly, and swallowed hard when she squeezed his hand back.

* * *

They rounded the corner and Richie could immediately hear his brother's voice. He was shouting gibberish and threats as they approached. "Harper… I…"

"Go on, go on, I'll stay here with Riley." She nodded her head toward the door as she shifted her sister in her arms.

"Thanks." He said as he stepped toward the room, feeling the cool air hitting his hand as he released her hand. He stepped into the room and found his brother rolling on the bed as a doctor attempted to stabilize him.

"STOP! STOP HURTING ME! STOP!" Greyson exclaimed.

"You need to stop struggling, you're only hurting yourself more!" The doctor exclaimed as he looked up at Richie desperately.

"Greyson." Richie said his name and as soon as his voice was heard, Greyson calmed considerably.

"Get him off me, Richie! Tell him to get off me! He wants to take my brain! He wants to take my brain and do experiments on it! He wants to kill me! Richie! Help me!" Greyson exclaimed as tears rolled down his face, his arm was flopping on his side as he struggled, the pain evident in his face as Richie bent down over his brother. The doctor took a step back as he observed their interaction, hoping his brother would calm him.

"Greyson, you have to calm down. You have to calm down, we're at a hospital. we're at a hospital, and they want to help you."

"NO! No they don't! They want to kill me! They want me dead! Make them go away! Make them go away! I want mom! I want GG! WHERE IS GG? SHE WILL TELL THEM! THEY WANT MY BRAIN!"

"Now what the hell are they going to do with your brains?" Richie said as he tried to rationalize his brother's obvious mental breakdown.

"They want to do experiments with it! They want to make… a robot… with my brain! They're going to kill me and make a robot with my brain." He breathed.

"Oh yeah? They want to make a freaking out robot? Cut it out, Greyson, and let the doctor do his job."

"YOU ARE ONE OF THEM! GET OFF ME! GET OFF ME! YOU WILL NOT GET ME IN THAT MACHINE! I AM GOING TO KILL YOU, RICHARD!" Greyson growled, the tone in his voice made Richie take a step back. He looked up at the doctor, who reached over to press a button for a nurse.

"Now you've gone and done it, Greyson, they're going to sedate you!"

"You are NOT putting a needle in me! You aren't putting anything near me!" He exclaimed as he tried to sit up. Richie reached forward and pushed his shoulders down as the doctor prepared the sedative. "GET OFF ME! GET OFF ME! NO! NO! STOP! YOU CAN'T HAVE MY BRAINS! YOU CAN'T HAVE MY BRAINS!"

Richard held his brother down and suddenly a uniformed police officer rushed into the room, along with a nurse or two. He pushed Greyson down against the bed with Richie as the doctor prepared the needle. Greyson struggled with all of his strength and Richie stared into his brother's eyes as he fought him. "Why are you doing this to me, Richie? Why? Why are you doing this to me!" He exclaimed as suddenly, another hand reached up and nearly grabbed the needle right from the doctor's hand.

"Greyson Robert Shepherd, you should be ashamed of yourself!" Ellis' voice broke through the chaos as her small frame pushed to the front. Greyson's head snapped in her direction.

"GG!" He exclaimed as he watched her hold the needle.

"This is for your own good, baby." She whispered as she pushed the needle into his arm, watching his eyes flutter in shock for a moment as the sedative immediately began to take effect.

"GG, why?" He said in shock. "Why?"

"Because I love you too much to let you do this to yourself, baby." She whispered as she handed the needle off to a nurse and put her hands to his forehead. He stared at her for a second as he mouthed something to her. She nodded her head as she kissed his cheek. "You rest. You rest, baby, and we'll take care of you." She said softly as she looked up at everyone surrounding the bed as they all took a step back except Richie, who held tightly to his brother's arm.

Richie was staring in shock as he suddenly felt a pair of hands on his. "You can let him go now." Derek whispered to his son as Richie continued to stare at his brother. "Richie," he whispered. "He's not going anywhere, you can let him go."

"Dad." Richie whimpered as in one quick movement, he turned his body around and slammed into his father with a forceful hug.

All Derek could do was hold him.

* * *

Derek held Richard for several minutes, the sounds and sights of the hospital room not even registering in his mind as he closed his eyes tightly against his father's chest. He could feel Derek's hands rubbing his back slightly, trying to soothe him as he squeezed him tightly, and suddenly he heard the voice of his grandmother rip through the room like a small child into a Christmas gift.

"Now what the hell is going on here?" She asked as she looked around the room at the people surrounding them. The doctor was dumbfounded, the nurse looked a combination of surprise and tiredness, a police officer who looked very much out of place, and there was her oldest grandson gripping his father as if he were the only thing keeping him standing.

She held Greyson's hand as she looked around, waiting for someone to explain anything about the situation, and after another second, she was through waiting. "He needs an MRI, a CT. He needs a full line of bloodwork, and I want everything to me as soon as it comes out of that computer. He needs fluids and a monitor. I want him admitted immediately!" She turned toward the doctor and glared at him with an intimidating stare. "And if he wakes up in that machine, rest assured, I will remove your brain and put it in a robot." She said as she turned and walked from the room quickly to call Boston General.

The doctor stared after her as Richie pulled out of his father's arms. "Who the hell is she?" The doctor said with an irritated growl.

"That," Derek said as he walked past the doctor with his arm around his son. "That is Doctor Ellis fucking Grey." He said as he walked out into the hallway. "Rich." He said as he tugged on Richie's arm and turned him around. Richie had a look of complete and utter defeat on his face, His cheeks were red and wind burned and his face had light cuts from the glass in the car accident. His eyes were clouded with fear, and he wasn't focusing on Derek. "Richie, look at me." Derek said again, touching Richie's chin, his blue eyes held no anger, only concern for his son as Richie stared blankly at his father. "Richard, say something." Derek whispered. "I'm not angry,just talk to me."

Richie stared at his father blankly for another second before his eyes cleared again, and he closed them tightly. "Oh God." he whispered.

"What is it, Rich?"

"Why didn't I take him to see a doctor when I first picked him up?" He whispered as he put his head down. "If I just took him to a doctor, if I just…"

"Richie, you didn't know."

"I knew he didn't look right. I should have taken him to a doctor." Richie whispered.

"Richard!" Harper exclaimed as she came around the corner holding Riley, who was very much awake. "Richard, what happened?" She said as Richie turned to face Harper immediately.

"They sedated him." he whispered, his eyes only on hers as he swallowed hard. "They sedated him and I…"

"But he's alive, and he's okay. He's just sedated." Harper said, trying to bring the bright side into the situation, however bleak even that was. She touched his cheek with her hand as she tried to get him to focus on her. She could see him visibly calming.

"He's alive." Richie repeated, feeling the knot in his stomach releasing slightly. "He is alive." He nodded.

"And he's not hurting himself anymore." She whispered, shaking her head.

"No." Richie said softly.

"Rich?" Derek said, sending Richie's head spinning around to his father, the redness of his cheeks deepening just slightly as he stared at Derek. He stared at him blankly.

"Oh." Richie whispered, watching the curiosity in his father's eyes. "Dad, this is Harper." He said awkwardly, turning to face his father as he stood beside her. "And Riley. Harper, this is my dad. She got us out of the car. She helped save Grey."

"I helped. I didn't save anyone." Harper said nervously.

"Harper, I'm glad you were there. Thank you." Derek said as he reached his hand out for hers. "Derek Shepherd."

"Wait…" She said as she shook his hand. "Doctor Derek Shepherd, as in… " She said as Derek opened his mouth to reply. Just as she started to finish her sentence, Ellis walked up behind him.

"Don't flatter him, dear. His head is big enough as it is, and we'll need him to be getting in and out of doorways today." She said as she grabbed her grandson's hand. "Richard, you are coming with me." She said as she grabbed his arm and pulled him down the hallway.

"And that… is his grandmother." Derek sighed as he rolled his eyes. "Doctor Ellis Grey."

* * *

Ellis pulled Richie down the hallway, his eyes glanced back to Harper one more time before he turned the corner with her. As soon as she turned the corner with him, she wrapped her arms around him and gave him a tight hug.

"GG?" He asked as he felt her face pushed into his chest. "GG, are you alright?" He asked as her head lifted to look up into his eyes, her hands raised to his face.

"Thank God you're alive." She said as she felt the heat from his cheeks. "Look at you, you're just a mess. You poor thing. Has someone looked at you? Did you break anything? Hurt anything?" She asked as she mothered him appropriately as he pushed his grandmother's hands from his face.

"GG, I'm fine. I'm fine, GG. Don't worry about me. Greyson, worry about Greyson."

"Well, someone has to worry about you besides your mother and father." She said as she reached her hand up to run her thumb tenderly over a cut on his temple. "Oh, you're bleeding. Do you have any soreness? Does it hurt to swallow? Can you move your neck?" She asked as she reached up and moved his head from side to side.

"GG. GG, I'm fine. I'm fine. Tell me what is wrong with Greyson. Can you tell? Harper told me that he has jaundice or something. I've read about it, I know what it is. Tell me more, tell me what you can tell just by looking at him. I trust you, I trust your judgment." He said hurriedly, waiting for his grandmother to give him some answers. "I need some answers, GG. I'm going crazy!" He whispered as she continued to push, poke, and prod at him to make sure he was alright. "Doctor Grey!" He exclaimed as he grabbed her hand and looked into her eyes intensely. She started at the sound of his voice raising at her and stared at him for a moment.

"Do you want me to slap you across that face of yours?"

"Do you want me to go ask Dad what's going on? Please. Please stop avoiding my questions. What is wrong with Greyson? Is Harper right? Is his liver failing?"

"We're going to see, but it doesn't look good." She said, clearing her throat.

"And he's acting crazy again. I don't know if he's taking his medication." Richie whispered.

"Was there anything else? What else did he tell you before the accident?"

"He had a headache and he said his stomach hurts. He said he thinks it's the medication. Also, there was blood, GG." Richie whispered. "He was coughing up blood."

"Okay." She nodded as she took it all in. It took every fiber of her being to listen to her grandson tell her these things and not act panicked. With every word he spoke, the more anxious she became. "Anything else?"

"I… I don't think so GG, I should have brought him to a hospital immediately. I should have known. I should have known he was sick." He whispered.

"He's been sick for a long time, Richard. You're not expected to know these things." She said softly as she touched his face.

"Was it alright that I called you? Was it okay that I called you and not mom and dad? Is that alright?"

"You did what you were supposed to do, Richard, and there's nothing you could have done differently. I'm proud of you." She said softly as she looked into his eyes and gave him a supportive smile.

"GG?" He whispered as he swallowed hard and watched her stare into his eyes.

"Hmm?"

"Don't let him die." He whispered. "I promised him that I wouldn't let him die."

"That's a pretty strong promise, Richard."

"I know." He said softly. "But if anyone can save him, it'll be you and Dad." He said as he shook his head and turned, making his way back down the hallway toward his father and Harper as they stood talking in the hallway.

* * *

Richie walked alongside his father and gave Harper a half smile. "Is he boring you with his stories?" Richie asked as Derek turned to his son and gave him a concerned look. "I'm fine." He said to his father who nodded.

"I've heard that one before." He said as Richie rolled his eyes.

"I was just talking to your father about his research with Parkinson's disease." She said with a nod.

"I'm sorry. I forgot to mention my father's name between the car wreck, the broken brother, and the impending liver failure." Richie sighed.

"Richie, be polite." Derek said as he looked at his son, expecting to see him acting sullen and irritated, but finding instead a challenging look in his eyes as he looked to the young woman across from him.

"She asked for it." Richie replied.

"I hardly think so, Richard." She shook her head as she shifted her sister in her arms.

They were then interrupted by the sound of a man's voice behind them, Richie turned to see a middle aged man, clean cut and very worried looking coming toward them. "Harper Leigh Sullivan!" He called as he approached them, she looked to the man and then to Richie, as a grin slipped over his face.

"Don't you dare say a word." She said as she took a step forward. "Daddy…" She said with a smile.

"Harper Leigh?" Richie whispered as she stepped on his foot as she passed him. "Ow!" He exclaimed.

"Daddy!" Riley exclaimed as she wiggled in her sister's arms. "Daddy!" She shouted. Harper let her slide out of her arms as she ran toward her father, who lifted her into the air.

"My little Riles!" He exclaimed as he kissed her cheek and lifted her into his arms. "Thank goodness you are okay!" He said as she nodded her head.

"Mister Grey is hurt, and Richie was nice. Harper likes him a lot. She thinks he's cute." The little girl rambled as Harper's cheeks turned bright red as she approached her father.

"Dad, I'm going to stay here." She said as her father continued walking toward Derek and Richie. "I'm going to stay here, okay?" She said as her father shook his head.

"You're not staying here tonight." He said as he held out his hand to Derek. "Daniel Sullivan." He said as Derek nodded his head.

"Derek Shepherd. Your daughter was quite the rescuer I hear. Both of them." Derek said as Harper stood beside her father and tapped him. "She really was at the right place at the right time."

"I knew something was going on when they didn't show up when they were supposed to. You must be Richard." Daniel said holding his hand out to Richie, who shook his hand politely. "You got into quite the mess there, didn't you?"

"Yes, sir." Richie nodded. "I'm sorry that you had to come all the way out here."

"It's alright, though I have to say, hearing that I'm getting a phone call from a hospital is pretty frightening."

"I don't doubt it, sir." Richie said with a nod. "Again, I apologize."

"How is your brother doing?" He asked as he looked to Derek.

"They just took him down for some tests." Derek nodded.

"Dad, this is Doctor Shepherd. He's a world famous neurosurgeon. I did a paper on one of his test procedures, don't you remember? I showed you that paper." She said as her father nodded. "I want to stay here. I wanted to…"

"Harper, Doctor Shepherd has his family that he has to take care of. he doesn't need you tagging along with them, he doesn't."

"She can stay if she'd like." Derek said with a nod. "But I understand, It's Christmas night."

"Santa is supposed to be here! He's supposed to be coming to our house, Daddy. To YOUR house. You filled out the form for YOUR house, and Santa is supposed to be coming THERE, and if I'm not there and sleeping in like ten minutes, I'm not going to get any presents. And that would be bad." Riley said as Harper gave her an irritated glare.

"You heard your sister." Daniel said as he nodded his head toward the door. "We'll take my car, and we'll come back tomorrow so that you can get yours." He said as Harper watched her father's eyes.

"You're going to drop me off here tomorrow to get my car?"

"I will, but you have to come with me now." He said as he nodded toward the door.

She turned toward Derek and Richie and then back to her father. "Can I have a second?" She asked as her father nodded. She gave her father a thankful smile and moved down the hallway toward Richie. She grabbed his arm and pulled him down the hallway.

"Where are you taking me?" He asked as she pulled him around the corner.

"Just right here." She said quickly as she reached in her pocket and pulled out a pen. "Here…" She said as she started to write across his hand, a phone number. "This is my number. I don't have a piece of paper or anything. I just… call me if… when you know more about your brother." She said softly as she watched him give her a strange look. "What?"

"Why do you care? Why do you even care? Don't worry about Grey. My father is here, my grandmother. Why do you even care?"

"I do. I do care." She said as she swallowed at his sudden harshness.

"You don't care about my brother. You care about who my father is. You care about my grandmother's name. Don't give me the bullshit, I've met a hundred med students just like you. Don't give me your phone number, give it to them."

"Richard?" She said with concern as she watched him rub his hand on his jeans.

"No." he said stubbornly. "No, thanks. Okay? Thanks for helping us. Thanks for being there and getting us out, but this is over. This ends here, now. I have my stuff out of your car, my brother is in the hospital and you are going home with your dad and your sister. it was nice to meet you, goodbye." He said as he turned away from her.

"Richard?" She said as she put her hand on his shoulder.

"I have to go. Have a nice life." He said as he pulled his shoulder from her hand and walked away and down the hallway toward his father. He turned the corner into the room where his brother had been, leaving Harper standing alone and confused, her hand dropping to her side as she sighed.

* * *

Richie walked into the hospital room and looked to the empty bed where his brother had once been laying. He walked to the chair in the room and kicked it fairly hard. He slammed his foot into the chair again as he stared at the floor for a few moments. He tried to control his breathing as he felt the soreness in his body starting to settle in, he could feel his eyes burning from being open for so long, he could smell the sterile smells of the hospital and his eyes were starting to blur from tears. He swung his foot back and kicked the chair again, sending it flying across the room, slamming into a wall.

"Hey. You don't live here, don't be destructive." His father's voice rang through the room, he looked over and shook his head.

"It's the same thing. Everywhere I go." He said with a huff.

"What is?" Derek asked as he watched Richie pace back and forth.

"People. People, Dad. Everywhere I go, they're all the same. All trying to get what they want from other people. Just selfishness and… and… forget it, just forget it."

"Richie." Derek said as he approached his son. "What has gotten you so high strung? You're worried about Grey? We're all worried about Grey, he's going to be fine." Derek said as he tried to remain positive, though he knew in his heart that things were looking bad. He just needed to calm Richie down.

"No… no, Dad. Things aren't going to be fine. it's not fine. it's FAR from fine. it's so far from fine that they aren't even in the same zip code anymore, Dad! They're not even on the same goddamned PLANET anymore!" Richie said as he leaned against the wall and slid to the floor. "No, everyone is out for themselves, and my brother is dying, and all I wanted to do was dress up in a stupid fuzzy red suit for my goddaughter and see my mother smile. And I'm here, I'm here in a hospital in the middle of nowhere. My brother is looking like a character from the Simpsons, his skin is so yellow and he's talking about brain stealing robots. Stuck here thinking about a girl who has nothing on her mind other than the fact that she just met a 'world famous' surgeon, her mentor for a lack of a better word, who leaves me her stupid phone number on my hand and leaves me alone to fend for myself on the fucking floor of a fucking hospital." He mumbled to himself as he stared at the linoleum below him as Derek stood above him, watching his son mumble to himself as he huffed.

"Richard." Derek said as he watched Richie look up at him with a desperate look on his face. "Don't be thick." He said simply as Richie's brow furrowed.

Suddenly, the door opened as Ellis entered the room. "Derek, you need to get down here now." He said as he took a step toward the door. "It's not good."

Derek walked swiftly toward the door and followed Ellis out into the hallway, with Richard right behind them. "What's going on?" he asked as Ellis shook her head.

"He's going to need a transplant, his liver looks like a pin cushion. It's completely shot." She said as they rushed down the hallway.

"Cirrosis?" Derek asked with a shocked expression.

"You're not going to believe it until you see it." Ellis said as they made their way down the hallway toward the testing rooms.


	7. Match Game

**Comments are appreciated...Only because I don't know if anyone is out there reading...**

* * *

Richie ran behind his father and grandmother as they rushed to the analysis room. Greyson was just being taken out of the MRI machine and placed on a bed, still sleeping soundly as they entered the room. Richie's eyes went to his father as soon as his eyes hit the computer screen, watching for his reaction, watching for any sign of hope. Instead, he saw his father's eyes widen with fear, his jaw drop.

"Fuck." Derek whispered as he watched the images on the screen. "Fuck, fuck, fuck…" He muttered.

"Is the profanity for the situation, or for the fact that Meredith isn't here?" Ellis asked as her eyes passed to Derek. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she looked at the screen and then looked back at Derek. She seemed to be disconnecting herself from the situation, pulling away slightly as she tried to remain cool, calm, and in control. Richie knew his grandmother, and he knew better than to think that everything was just perfectly fine.

"What is that?" Richie whispered as he took a step forward, his father's eyes finally meeting his as he glanced out the window at his brother. "Dad, what is that?" He asked, feeling his breathing becoming slightly erratic, his eyes now flicking to his grandmother, who was staring at Derek. "Dad, tell me what's going on? Is he going to need a new liver? What is going on?"

"He's going to need a new liver." Derek whispered. He stared at the screen. "He needs a new liver." Derek swallowed again. "He needs it, or… or he'll die."

"Dad?" Richie whispered.

"I…I… Have… I don't…"

Suddenly, everything seemed to stop for Richie. His father's voice was no longer there, his grandmother's lips were moving, but he couldn't hear a thing other than the blood rushing in his ears. His thoughts catching only certain words. His mouth was going dry and he could feel his throat closing up as he breathed deeply, a long wheezing sound coming from his lungs as they bickered back and forth about the prognosis. He stared at the screen, the black and white imagery meaning nothing to him except death. The black and white image was the inside of his dying brother, and the longer he stood there, the more helpless he felt, the more useless, he felt like everything was falling in around him and there was absolutely nothing that he could do. He was stuck. He was stuck and lost. He felt his father put his hand on his back, he heard the garbled sound of his voice as he tried to catch his breath.

"Richie, you have to breathe, Richie. Richie, pay attention to me!" Derek called as Richie started to stumble forward, the rapid breathing making him feel lightheaded. "Richard, look at me. Richard!"

"I…" Richie mumbled as he swallowed, trying to control his breathing. "I have to… I… I have to…" He said as he took a step back, he glanced between his grandmother and his father as he held his hands up in defense, trying to keep them away from him for a moment. "I…need… I need to call mom. Mom needs to get here now!" He said suddenly as he turned and ran out of the door.

Derek glanced to Ellis, who looked toward the door. "What are you still doing here? Go get him!" She exclaimed as Derek turned and ran from the room, making his way down the hallway as quickly as he could, trying to find Richie before he called his mother, because the way Richie was thinking, and knowing Meredith's delicate state, this would not go over well, not at all.

* * *

Derek ran into the hallway and looked both ways for his son , both hallways were clear. "Shit." He muttered to himself as he turned and went left down the hallway. He jogged quickly, calling after Richie. "Richard!" Derek called as he looked in various offices for any sign of his son. "Richard Michael Shepherd!" Derek exclaimed as he rounded a corner to the stairwell. "Oh God… no…" He muttered as he rushed to the door and slammed the opening bar with his hand, swinging the door open. He was prepared to run up the stairs to the next floor, but he stopped in his tracks. Sitting on the landing was his son, his head in his hands as he sobbed. "Richie?" Derek said softly. "Richie?" Derek said as he knelt on the stair in front of his son. "Richie, look at me."

"No. No. I'm not going to look at you. I don't want to look at you!" He exclaimed as he continued to cry. "Why? Why is he hurting? Why is he hurting all the time, Dad? Why is Greyson always hurting?"

"Richie." Derek said softly as he put his arm around his son and pushed himself onto the landing beside him "Richie, we're going to figure this out."

"No we won't! Where is Mom? I need to talk to Mom! Why isn't she here?" Richie exclaimed as he shook his head. "Greyson could die, Dad! He could die tonight, and Mom isn't here!"

"Don't say that! Greyson isn't going to die tonight."

"He could! He could die! Couldn't he? He's got a broken arm and a liver that's shriveled up to nothing. His body is poisoning him. He could die. He could die right now, he could be DEAD! HE COULD BE DEAD AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN TELL MOM!" he exclaimed as he reached up and grabbed the banister, pulling himself up.

"Richie, I couldn't tell your mother." Derek said calmly as he tried to get his son to look at him. "And stop saying that he's going to die."

"He is going to die! He is going to die, and the last thing he said to me was that he wanted me to die. I hope you're happy, Dad. I hope you're…"

"Stop it!" Derek exclaimed as he stood up. "Stop it right now!" Derek exclaimed as Richie suddenly jumped backwards. He hardly ever heard his father raise his voice, he had never seen that genuinely angry look in his eyes. His fists were clenched, his face red and angry, his blue eyes had turned a deep angry blue. "You will stop shouting at me right now!" Derek shook his head. "Your brother is not… NOT… going to die, and your mother… your mother? Yeah, I should have told her. I should have told her the truth, but she needs her goddamned fucking sleep, Richard! Since your brother. since. that. Since that."

"Say it, Dad." Richie said as he shook his head. "Just fucking say it."

"Watch your mouth, Richard." Derek said angrily. "Your mother is fragile."

"My mother is not fragile. You treat her like she's a fucking porcelain doll! She can take care of herself, she doesn't even need you most of the time. She's stronger than you are!" Richie exclaimed as Derek raised his hand.

"I want to slap you so badly right now." Derek growled at his son.

"But you won't." Richie said angrily. "You won't."

"No… no, I won't." Derek said as he let his hand drop to his side. "I'm not going to slap you. Your mother would slap you." Derek said as he raised his eyebrows. "Because she's stronger than me." Derek said as he cleared his throat.

Richie could see the tears pooling in his father's eyes. He could see the hurt and pain that was floating through his mind, he could see his father's adam's apple bobbing up and down as he swallowed hard. "Dad." He whispered as he reached for his father's hand. "Dad, I'm… I'm sorry." He said softly as he felt tears coming down his cheeks, his voice cracking.

"I know you are." Derek whispered as he sniffled. "Listen." He said softly as he looked toward the door. "Just, go be with your brother okay? Just in case he wakes up from the sedative. Please? I have to call your mother." He whispered.

"Are you going to tell her everything?"

"Not over the phone, but she'll know." He whispered. "She always knows."

"I love you, Dad." Richie whispered as he reached forward and hugged his father.

"I love you, Rich." Derek said softly as he lovingly wrapped his arms around his son and held him for just a moment longer before releasing him from the hug, letting him disappear out the door to find his brother, leaving Derek alone as he leaned against the wall. He looked up to the ceiling and sighed loudly as he pulled his phone from his pocket. "Meri." he sighed, as he dialed her cell phone number and held his breath, waiting for her to answer.

* * *

Meredith lay on the floor beneath the Christmas tree, her eyes were closed as she slept peacefully beneath it. The lights glow down gracefully onto her sleeping body as she curled herself around the blanket that Marion had draped her in when she checked on her downstairs. She was alone, if only for a few more minutes before the festivities of the middle of the night were started, and she started at the feeling of her phone ringing in her hand. She had held it securely against her body, in the event that Derek would call, and she looked at his phone number on the phone, and the nickname above it that he had entered always made her smile. 'D-awg'. She smiled sleepily as she lifted the phone to her ear, remaining in her curled position beneath the tree. "Hmm…" She mumbled into the line, still unable to force a word from her lips, she yawned as she waited for his reply. There was no response initially, and it made her heart flutter just a bit. "Derek?" She breathed sleepily into the line.

"Meri." Derek said softly into the line, the slight sound of echoing could be heard, though Meredith attributed it to the echoing of the cell phone, not knowing that he was still sitting in the stairwell, his head down between his knees as he held the phone to his ear and stared at the floor. "Meri." He repeated.

"Derek?" She said again, a strange feeling lifting into her belly at the sound of his voice, the sound of sorrow in his breathing, the way he said her name. "Are you alright?" She whispered.

"Did I wake you?" Derek asked, knowing full well that he had, but he was not ready for the conversation he needed to have with her. He needed to work up his courage.

"Yes." She swallowed. "But it's okay." She whispered. "What time is it?" She said as she turned her head to look at the grandfather clock in the corner, the light of the tree reflecting off its hands.

"It's a little after one." He said softly. "Is my mom awake yet?"

"No." She said softly. "Did you make it home already?" She asked as she tried to remember what time he had left and if he should have made it to the destination by then. His reply was silence. She waited for his words, for him to answer her, and for a split second wondered if he had hung up on her. "Derek?" She whispered. "Is everything okay?"

Derek thought for a moment about changing the subject, about leaving Meredith in the dark just a little longer, just to preserve her sanity. He thought of just telling her that he called to hear her voice, that he loved her and missed her and was thinking about her. He thought about it for that moment, but he knew he couldn't do it. He knew that if he held off any longer, then it was just another moment of lying, another moment of keeping something so important from her. Another moment of lying to not just her, but to his son, her mother, himself. It was breaking his heart as he listened to the concern in her voice, knowing that only moments before she was sleeping soundly, most likely beneath the Christmas tree waiting for him. "Meri…" He whispered.

"Derek, please tell me that you're alright." She said into the line as she slowly sat up.

"I'm alright." He said.

"Mom?"

"She's fine." Derek replied, feeling slightly more uplifted that he could say those encouraging words to her.

"Then why did you call me?" She asked, not in an accusing way, just a small lift in her voice as she stared at the ornaments on the tree, her eyes slowly following the string of lights as she tried to fathom why Derek would call, knowing that she was awake.

"Is everyone sleeping?"

"Yes… Yes, Derek." She said softly, her voice becoming slightly more panicked as she listened to his voice. She could tell that there was something that he was not telling her, but she knew she'd have to pry it out. "Derek, what is it?" She asked as she listened to his pause again, she could hear a slight sniffle. "Derek?" She said again.

"I am not in the car, baby." Derek said softly.

"What?"

"I'm not on the way to Boston." He said as he closed his eyes tightly, looking to the ceiling he clenched his eyes as he held the phone to his ear and listened.

"Derek? What are you talking about?" She asked.

"I'm about 40 minutes from Mom's house. Your mom was paged to a hospital there, here."

"Why are you there? Derek? Why was mom paged to another hospital? I don't understand." She whispered, though she was fairly sure she did understand. "You said you talked to them." She whispered.

"I know."

"You said they were alright!" She exclaimed as she stood up. "You said they were alright and you talked to them!" She shouted into the phone.

"Richie is alright. Greyson is sick." Derek whispered.

"YOU LIED TO ME!" Meredith screamed into the line as suddenly a pair of arms wrapped around her and scooped the phone from her ear. She turned immediately and fell into the arms of the person who had reached for her, burying her head in their chest.

"Where are you, Derek?" Mark said into the line as Meredith began to sob into his chest.

* * *

Mark got the directions to the hospital from Derek as Meredith cried into him, her angry feelings toward Derek were directed directly into Mark's chest as she sobbed. He rubbed her back delicately as she tried not to shout, knowing that it was possible that she had already made a scene or woke someone up, she clutched Mark's shirt tightly. As he closed the phone, she pushed at his chest and glared at him, pushing him away from her. "How much did you already know?" She accused as she glared at him.

"Meredith, I didn't…"

"Yes you did! You had to have known something." She said angrily. "You knew something or you wouldn't have been down here! You wouldn't have been down here to keep me from saying something I might regret."

"Were you going to say something you might regret?"

"I regret nothing that I say to that man." She said, pointing at the phone. "He lied to me!"

"He lied to you to protect you, Meredith. He lied to you because he loves you. He lied to you because he knew that this would be how you would react." He said bluntly as she shook her head angrily at Mark.

"This?" She said angrily. "He was concerned that I was going to react like an angry mother whose child is in danger and was told otherwise?"

"No." Mark whispered. "He was absolutely positive that if he told you something when he knew nothing, that you would bear the brunt of the weight, that you would break yourself over it. They're alive, Meredith, and Greyson is sick. Greyson was sick when you sent him away, the only question now is, how sick is he?"

"How sick is he, Mark?" Meredith asked as her anger started to evaporate slowly into the air. "How sick is my baby?"

"All he said was get there now." Mark said softly.

"Are you lying to me, Mark?" She asked as she stared into his eyes angrily.

"I wouldn't dare." He said as he shook his head.

Meredith stared into his eyes steadily, she glared angrily at him as he shook his head. He gave her an innocent look as she tried to decide what to think, say or do. "Take me there now." She said as she stomped across the floor toward the stairs.

"Where are you going?" Mark asked as he watched her turn around sharply.

"I'm going to go talk to my daughter. Get clothes on, you look like an ape." She said as she looked at his bare chest as he gave her a look of surprise. "Come on, you're married to Cristina Yang, don't tell me that's the first time you've ever heard that." She muttered as she turned and moved for the stairs quickly.

Meredith reached the top of the stairs and wiped the tears from her eyes as she walked toward the room where her daughter was sleeping along with a couple of her cousins, and Mikala. She took a deep breath as she reached for the door handle, and opened it slowly.

The beam of light from the hallway shot across the room and illuminated it slightly as a couple of the girls shifted in their sleep. Meredith stealthily made her way across the room as she knelt next to her daughter. She took a deep breath as she touched her forehead lightly with her hand. Mariellis' eyes opened slightly as she caught a glimpse of her mother in the moonlight. "Mommy?" She said softly from her sleepy spot in the bed, she yawned. Meredith watched her look up at her. "Are bum and dum here yet?" she asked as Meredith smiled sadly at her daughter's nicknames for her brother.

"Sweet pea…" Meredith whispered as she tried to remain calm, though her voice deceived her calm.

"Mommy?" She whispered as she sat up, her eyes alert, her face showing her concern.

"The boys had some car trouble." She said softly. "They aren't far and Daddy is already there checking on them."

"Are they okay?" She asked nervously as she swallowed hard.

"Oh, they're just fine." She said, her voice a tad shaky as she said the words as she watched the disbelief in her daughter's eyes. "I have to see for myself." She whispered.

"You're not going to be here for Christmas morning?" She whispered as she watched the disappointment in Meredith's eyes. "It's okay, Mom." She said as she shrugged slightly. "I wouldn't blame you anyway. I'd blame those troublemaking brothers of mine." She rolled her eyes. "They never just let you have a good Christmas." She said as she gave her mother a hopeful smile. "Besides, it's technically Christmas morning right now." She said with a sly smile.

"You be a good girl for Granny and your Aunt Cristina."

"GG is going with you?" She asked as she raised her eyebrows.

"She went with your daddy. Uncle Mark is bringing me once we figure out how to get a car." She said in reply as the little girl shook her head.

"Oh boy, GG is already there? I wouldn't want to be those boys, not in a million years." She said with a giggle as she watched Meredith give her a slight smile. "Mom?" She said as Meredith tilted her head. "I love you."

"I love you too, baby." She said as she kissed her cheek slightly.

"And Mom?" She said as Meredith turned her head toward her daughter as she stood up to walk from the room.

"Hmm…?" Meredith whispered.

"Merry Christmas." Mari said as she smiled at her mother and watched Meredith smile a genuine smile back at her.

"Merry Christmas, Mari." She said softly, as she blew her daughter a kiss and slipped from the room.

* * *

Derek had hung up his phone and sat in the stairwell for a while, his head was between his knees as he stared at the floor. He could hear Meredith's voice in his head, shouting about the fact that he had lied, and all he wanted to do was tell her that it was for her. He had lied, and he knew he shouldn't have, but it was for her own peace of mind. With a loud sigh he stared at the ceiling, his head tipped back and hit the concrete wall a bit hard, but he didn't care. Nothing mattered at this moment. He could feel the tears welling in his eyes as he thought of his son, his sickness, his pain. He closed his eyes for a moment and all he saw was the blood of his son on his hands. "I have to get out of here." He whispered as he stood up carefully, leaning against the wall as he rubbed his eyes and left the stairwell in search of Richie.

Richie sat in the hospital room, watching the bed with his brother lying in it. They had taken his blood and done a full physical, and now they were attaching monitors to his body. The doctor was preparing to set his arm, and his other arm had been restrained in the event that he woke up. Richie remained quiet, his eyes watching everything the doctors did to his brother as he just remained silent.

"You were in the car accident with him?" The doctor asked, trying to make conversation with Richie, which he appreciated to an extent as he was keeping his mind off the bigger facts of Greyson's condition.

"Yes, sir." Richie nodded as he swallowed hard.

"Did you want to be looked at, are you feeling alright? Did you break anything?"

"I'm fine." Richard said as he stared at his brother. He paused for a moment and realized his tone may have come off as rude. "I'm sorry…" He whispered. "I'm alright, thank you." He whispered.

"Did you want a police report, or anything like that?"

"No… no, the snow plow guy… he um… he called a tow truck and someone to get the car. There's nothing of value in it. I took it out after the accident. They're going to call me about it." Richie whispered.

"Any soreness? Cuts, bruises?"

"I am fine, I'm fine… please… please just worry about him, not me. Just worry about him." Richie said with a sigh as he shook his head. He stared down at his brother's restrained hand and swallowed hard as he tried so hard to remain strong. The door opened and he didn't turn to see who was standing there, knowing for sure that it was one of two people.

"Why is he restrained?" Ellis asked as she reached forward and pulled the restraint from his wrist.

"He was very violent before he went under sedation, Doctor Grey, we thought it would be best if…"

"Really? You thought it'd be best to scare the shit out of the kid when he wakes up? Genius idea doc. You should be up for a Pulitzer peace prize for your bedside manner." She said as she looked over his work with Greyson's arm. "Show me your technique for setting his arm." She said as she watched the doctor continue to look at Ellis with a mix between confusion, surprise and irritation. "Well, are you going to do it, or do you want me to do it?" She asked as the doctor looked back to Greyson and continued his procedure. "Well, are you going to explain to me your technique, or are we doing a mime impersonation?"

"GG." Richie said softly as he tried to get her attention. She turned her head toward her grandson and watched him shake his head. "Just let him do it." He said softly as Ellis watched her grandson for a moment.

"You need some sleep." She said softly as she walked toward him. She reached forward and touched his cheek watching his eyes stay on hers.

"I don't want to sleep. I need to stay with Greyson."

"I can stay here. You need sleep."

"No, GG, I have to stay here with him. You need to find out why his body is trying to kill him." Richie whispered.

"Richard." She said softly as she touched his cheek.

"I got him into this mess, GG." Richie said as he stared into his grandmother's eyes.

"You did not get him into this mess, Richard." She whispered. "He has to have been sick for months. This accident didn't do anything but bring light to what has been hurting him."

"What do you think it is, GG? How is just replacing his liver going to fix it? What hurt his own liver, GG?"

"We have to find that out." She said softly.

"In the meantime?" Richie whispered. "Is he just going to lie here in pain, GG? Is he just going to deteriorate in front of us? What happens if we can't find a liver, GG?" He whispered.

"I'm going to be tested. Your father, your mother is going to want to be tested. We're going to look for a match."

"You don't need to be dead to donate your liver?" Richie whispered as he swallowed hard.

"No, the liver is a very unique organ. A person can give a portion of their liver, and have it transplanted into someone else's body, and in about 4-6 weeks, it is generally back to normal, and the other person has a second chance." She whispered.

"So, I could be tested and if we're a match I could give Greyson a portion of my liver?" Richie asked.

"No." She said, her voice sounding more indignant than informing. "You're not going to do that." She said softly. "It's too risky." She said as Richie shook his head.

"It's not too risky for you or Dad to do it, but it's too risky for me?" He asked as he raised his eyebrows.

"No, Richard." She said stubbornly. "Drop it."

"What if it's not a match? What if you and Dad and Mom aren't a match?"

"Drop it, Richard." She said softly as she looked over at the doctor as he watched the two of them, he looked back to Greyson's arm and continued setting it. Ellis looked to Richie and back to the doctor. "I have to go find your father." She whispered as she turned and walked out of the room.

Richie sat staring at his brother, when his eyes lifted to the doctor. "I want to be tested as a possible match. I'm of age, and I can make that decision for myself." He whispered as the doctor nodded, knowing full well to keep his mouth closed about it, but also knowing Greyson's dire situation, he wasn't about to refuse a possible donor, even if it did go against the wishes of Doctor Ellis Grey.


	8. Mother Dearest

Meredith remained quiet for most of the ride or the hospital. Mark sat beside her, watching her breath heavily, the anger just spouting from her body, the frustration making her cheeks turn a deep red as she clenched her fist tightly, pressing her engagement and wedding ring into her hand "Doesn't that hurt?" He whispered as her head snapped in his direction.

"I don't want to talk, I want to get there." Meredith growled at Mark as she glared at him.

"Maybe you should talk. Maybe it'd be good for you."

"Do you have ears, Mark? DO you listen? I do NOT want to talk." She exclaimed as she squeezed her fist harder as he drive.

They were quiet for a little longer, as Mark sighed when she huffed one more time. "You have to do something other than stew, Meredith, I can't listen to you stew."

"Why? What is wrong with me stewing? You can't handle it? You can't handle a little bit of emotion? IS it too much for your PEA brain?"

"Meredith, that is enough." Mark growled.

"Oh, so now you're going to get angry? Now you're going to get upset with me?" She spat at him as she snarled at him.

"I didn't lie to you, Meredith, and even Derek, he lied, but he was trying to protect you."

"Derek doesn't need to protect me. I can protect myself!" She exclaimed. "I can protect myself, and I can protect my kids, and I don't need Derek. I don't need him." She said angrily.

"Really? You don't need him?" Mark asked as Meredith sneered at him.

"No! When I see him. I'm just… I'm going to just rip him apart."

"Oh yeah, you're going to pull his hair out one at a time?"

"YES! And I'm going to just… I'm going to just really let into him! I'm tired of him treating me like I'm so fragile! I'm not fragile! I'm strong! Who the hell does he think he's dealing with?"

"Yeah, right! who does he think he's dealing with!" Mark repeated, only to get an irritated look from Meredith.

"Don't mock me!"

"I'm not mocking you. I'm pissed too." Mark said. "I'm pissed that he dragged me out amidst the festivities to placate you, only to not find the boys and spend an hour sitting in a parking lot waiting to hear word instead of coming home."

"He did NOT!" She exclaimed.

"He did." Mark nodded. "He said that being out of the house was better than being stuck indoors with you worrying."

"Mark, he didn't say that!" Meredith shook her head.

"He did, that's what he said." Mark said as he shrugged. "I don't know what he meant by it, but he did say it."

Meredith suddenly became very silent, her fists had unclenched as she sat there, staring at the snowy windshield as the snowflakes began to fall again. "I hate winter." She whispered quietly as he pulled closer to a town that they were approaching. "Is this where they are?"

"The hospital should be around the next corner." He said softly as he turned at the next intersection. The large hospital loomed over them as Mark pulled into the parking lot, looking for a parking space, he slowed as he drove down the parking lot. He slowed for a moment and before he could say a word, Meredith had jumped from the vehicle and started running toward the emergency bay. Mark swallowed hard as he watched her figure disappear through the opening doors. "Damn it Derek, you had better be wearing armor. because when she gets her hands on you…" Mark whispered as he pulled into a parking spot and sighed heavily, before turning the car off and making his way inside, himself.

* * *

Derek was pacing outside his son's room, Greyson was sleeping peacefully and Richie had gone with the doctor to get a check up. He paced up and down the hallway and Ellis sat in the room shaking her head. "Derek, will you stop being such a damn 'Nervous Nelly' and get your ass in here."

"I lied to her, Ellis." Derek said from outside. "She's going to kill me." He shook his head.

"She's not going to kill you." Ellis said as she sighed. "She may use your body for spare parts, but never kill you." She said as Derek glared into the room at his mother in law.

"Are you done?" He growled.

"I'm never done, Derek. People like me live forever." She said as she smirked at him, sending his head shaking, and a deep grunt to run through his lungs.

"No kidding." He puffed as he glanced down the hallway to see his wife running down toward him. He expected the first thing for her to do was to punch him in the gut. She had never done it before, but there was a first time for everything. There were so many things between them, that he should have known better than to lie to her, to keep this from her. So when she practically tackled him in the hallway, her arms wrapping around his body tightly as she squeezed and held on for dear life, he was more than a little bit surprised. "Meri…" He whispered. "Oh, Meri…" He said as he pushed his nose into her hair for a moment and breathed in her scent. Her large winter coat was puffy and warm, her fingertips were like ice as she reached her hands to touch his cheeks.

"Where are the boys?" She asked as Derek nodded toward the door.

"No, Meri, wait!" He said as he pulled at her, feeling her resistance strongly as she turned in his arms. He pushed her up against the wall slightly.

"What? What are you doing? Let me in there!" She said as she gave him an angry stare, watching the sorrow in his eyes. "Derek?"

"Listen, you can go in, obviously, but there are some things I haven't told you yet. Don't…"

"Derek." She swallowed.

"I'm not trying to keep them from you, know that, okay? I'm just trying to space it out a little."

"Derek…" She grunted, her voice a little more frustrated as Ellis walked from the room.

"For Christ's sake, Derek! Let the woman go to her son!" She said as she touched Derek's arm as she pulled slightly. Meredith pulled from his arms and pushed past Derek and Ellis and stepped into her son's room.

* * *

The gasp was audible, the sound of her feet thwacking across the floor as she called Greyson's name. She called him 'baby', called for him to wake up, to look at her to talk to her. She called for him to give her any indication that he was alive, that he was in there. "What happened to his arm!" She exclaimed as she touched the cast, running her hand along it's length, she watched as Derek and Ellis stepped into the room. "What the hell happened to his arm!?" She screamed as tears rolled down her cheeks. She moved from one side of the bed to the other, examining him, touching him poking and prodding at her son. "His liver… he… his eyes are yellow, his skin. Have you had him tested? What is… when did this… how… I just…" She said as she turned around with an accusatory glare. Her mouth was moving but only the softest sound was coming out. She looked absolutely livid, speechless, and completely broken at the same time. Derek and Ellis stood in the doorway as Mark appeared beside her. "Where is Richard?" She said as she grasped her son's hand. "WHERE IS RICHARD, DEREK?!" She screamed at her husband as Derek stood staring at her, still unable to move, she started to walk right at him as Richie pushed his way into the room. He grabbed hold of his mother before she reached his father and she automatically put her arms around his neck.

"I'm right here." He said softly as she squeezed him so tightly, he could feel her nails digging into his skin. "I'm right here, Mom, I'm right here." He whispered. He felt her bury her face in his neck as he squeezed her tightly. "I'm alright, I'm alright, Mom. I'm right here and I'm okay." He said softly as she sniffled into his skin. He could feel her grip loosen as she realized that he had lifted her clear off the ground, his grip loosening as he set her to the floor. "I'm alright." He said softly as she pushed herself away for a moment and touched his face, looking into his eyes. "See?" He said as she looked deeply into his eyes. "See that? I'm okay. Do you believe me?" He asked as he gave her a soft smile. "Do you believe me?" He whispered as she touched his face again and again, her head finally leaning down to rest on his head.

"What happened, Richie?" She whispered as she squeezed him again. "What happened?"

"I'll tell you." He said softly as his eyes flashed to his father. "I'll tell you, but you have to sit down, okay? And then… then I'm going to tell you what we're going to do about it." He said as Meredith nodded against her son.

"Rich, I can…" Derek said as he watched Richie's eyes darken slightly as he felt his mother's grip tighten.

"Dad, just… I can do this." He said softly as he nodded. "I can."

"But…"

"Just go, Derek." Meredith whispered as she looked up at him with angry, hurt eyes. "Just go for now?" She whispered. "Please." She pleaded as she stared at the three people in the doorway. All three were people that she knew would live or die for her, and right now she didn't want to see their faces. It wasn't because they lied, and it wasn't because she was mad at them. She just needed a moment to compose herself. She needed a moment with her sons. She needed to hear it from him before she stepped into the dark, cold reality that was her son's sickness, and she knew that Richard had been there for it all.

"Meri." He whispered as he watched the desperation in her eyes as she shook her head.

"I love you, Derek, but please." She whispered.

"I'll be right outside." He said softly as he swallowed hard. "We'll be right outside." He said as she and Richard nodded, and watched as Derek, Mark and Ellis all disappeared behind the wooden door, leaving mother and son's alone, with only the sound of silence and the machines filled the air with uncertainty and pain, as Meredith calmly prepared herself for Richard's words.

Richie led his mother to a chair across the room beside the bed. She held tightly to his arm as if it were the only thing keeping her standing. Her eyes remained on her son, her lips unable to release the millions of questions that were milling around in her mind as her son sat beside her, watching the terror in her eyes as she watched Greyson lay motionless on the bed. "He's sedated, Mom." Richie whispered as he felt his mother's grip loosen just slightly. He turned and slipped his arm from his mother's grasp, kneeling before her as he reached for her hands and looked up into her eyes.

He watched her for a moment, the broken tenderness lying in the depths of her soul were screaming out for him to fix it, to do something, to tell her something that would protect her from the pain in her heart. "What happened, Richie?" She whispered finally, her breath catching in her throat as she finished her sentence, tilting her head in question as she waited for his answer. "What happened?" She whispered again.

"I think we should get Dad." Richie whispered as he started to stand up.

"No." She said sternly as she grabbed his arm and pulled him down, watching him cringe. "What? What is it? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Richie said with a groan, feeling the soreness from the accident, his ribs still sore from Greyson punching him in the car. "I'm alright, just sore. But Mom, you can't push Dad away, you can't do this to him."

"Your father will be fine." Meredith said as she gave him an irritated glare. "Now tell me what happened to your brother, what happened to you? Was there a car accident? When did it happen? Why didn't you call me, Richard? Why did you wait so long? Why didn't you call me?"

"We didn't have service, cell service."

"And you called your father." Meredith said angrily.

"Mom…" Richie whispered. "Listen, I picked him up at school and he was acting fine. He looked a little off, but you know? I figured he was just nervous. He had a bit of a stomachache, a headache and he was blaming it on the medication. He had a mild outburst in the car." Richie sighed. "He calmed down, and then had an episode, you know, where he kind of stares off and when he comes to, he doesn't remember anything? Well, that happened, and he punched me, and we almost got into a car accident then. But we kept driving, and the snow was getting worse. Grey closed his eyes to rest because of his headache and I went around a corner. There was a car stuck and I tried to keep control of the car, but the next thing I knew, it was slamming into a tree and landed sideways in the snowbank. Mom?" Richie whispered as he watched his mother staring at him dumbfounded. "Mom, I'm so sorry." He whispered as Meredith just stared at him. "I'm so sorry I hurt him, I'm so sorry." He whimpered.

"Richie." Meredith whispered as she touched her son's face. "Richie, you didn't do this." She whispered.

"I got into the accident, Mom. I got us stranded out in the middle of nowhere. It was my fault." He whispered.

"But you didn't do this to Greyson, baby. It's not the accident. It looks to me like the broken arm was just a small thing with everything else." She whispered, trying so hard to be supportive for her son, despite her sadness. "Why didn't you call me?" She whispered.

"Because…" Richie sniffled. "Because I knew it was much worse than it seemed." He said softly. "I called GG, I didn't know what else to do."

"You could have called me, Richard." She said softly as she stared into his eyes. "You know that your father tries to protect me. You knew he wouldn't tell me anything."

"He won't tell me anything either." Richie replied. "GG won't discuss it with me."

"Discuss what?" Meredith asked as she squeezed her son's hands and glanced to Greyson as she looked to Richie again.

"Dad says that Greyson needs a transplant." He whispered.

"Excuse me?" Meredith whispered as she nearly knocked Richie out of the way as she stood up.

"Mom?" Richie said as he watched her cover her mouth with her hand, sucking in the air that she could as she stared down at his body.

"Oh my, my poor baby!" She whispered.

"Dad says he has cirrhosis." Richie whispered.

"No…" Meredith whimpered as she moved to the bed and reached her hand to Greyson's face.

"But I just… Mom, how?" Richie whispered as he watched his mother touch her son's face and run her hand down his cheek. "Mom?" He whispered as he watched her silent tears run down her face as he moved around the bed across from her. "Mom, answer me." He whispered. "Please?" He whispered. "Mom? What are we going to do?"

"I…" She whispered as she watched Greyson carefully, unable to convey any emotion except for the tears rolling down her cheeks. She was absolutely speechless, and Richie's questions were just another sound in her mind. She stared at her son lying in the bed, her heart pounding in her ears. "I need…" She whispered as she watched Greyson's eyes flicker slightly. Her breath caught in her throat as she stared down at her son, waiting for his eyes to open. "Greyson." She whispered, her cool hand touching his cheek as she waited patiently. His eyes opened, and remained unfocused for a moment, blinking hard. "Baby." She whispered as his yellowed eyes moved in her direction, a confused and scared look in his eyes as Meredith watched his lips move and air pass between them. She glanced to Richie who looked from his mother to his brother. "Greyson, I love you." She whispered as she shook her head.

"Mommy?" His voice croaked helplessly as his brow furrowed, and a lone tear rolled down his cheek as Meredith just stood and held him.

Meredith looked up at Richie, her eyes meeting his as he swallowed hard, wiping the tear that had fallen down his cheek. "Can you go get your father, please?" She whispered. Richie nodded his head and turned, walking for the door, he had barely turned the knob when the door opened.

"Were you listening at the door or something?" Richie asked as Derek gave his son a scrutinizing look as he walked past him and right to Meredith's side, wrapping his arm around her. Richie paused for a moment and looked at his parents over Greyson's bed. He watched his mother bury her face in his father's chest and begin to cry. He bit his lower lip and sucked in a breath as he walked out of the room.

* * *

He stepped into the hallway and nearly walked right into his grandmother. "Richard." She said as she put her hand on his chest. "Is she alright?" She whispered as she watched the hurt look on his face direct itself to him.

"She will not be tested." He whispered as he shook his head at his grandmother.

"Richard?" She asked as she watched him take a slow deep breath, his eyes flashing from one of hers to the other, back and forth as he tried to focus on his grandmother.

"GG." He said as he sucked his breath in deeper. "You are not going to let her get tested." He said softly.

"What are you talking about, Richard?" She asked as he glanced to Mark as he stood by the door, watching Richie's broken expression, the way he stood, trying so hard to be strong, but so obviously breaking apart. His eyes moved to his grandmother once more and he took her arm, pulling her gently down the hallway, out of earshot of Mark.

"My mother." He choked. "You cannot, you will not, let her get tested. I don't want her getting tested for a match." He said.

"But Richard, the best case for survival is a blood relative and your mother is healthy, and…"

"No." Richie said as he shook his head. "No, you're not going to do that to her."

"Richard, I don't know what you think you're going to do, but you have a better chance of getting pigs to fly through hula hoops on a summer afternoon than you have of…"

"GG!" He exclaimed. "I'm not going to have this argument! Don't argue with me about this! I am not dad! I am not going to play with your metaphors and your sarcastic comments! You will NOT let my mother be tested for this! You will NOT, do you understand me?"

"Then how are we going to know she is a match for your brother, Richard?" She said as she straightened her posture, glaring into his eyes as she challenged him and his anger.

"It doesn't matter if she's a candidate." He said as he straightened himself. "Because I'm not going to let her donate her liver to him. I am not going to put both my mother and my brother at risk. I am not going to let them do that to my family." He said as he swallowed hard and wiped his tear.

"Then what do you suppose we do, Richard?" She asked, her cold, icy stare sending shivers down his spine as her eyes narrowed.

"I'm giving him mine." Richard said as he stood tall and proud.

"Richard, you don't know that you're a match, and I'm not going to allow the doctor to…"

"He already ran the tests." Richie said as he glared at his grandmother, challenging her to say anything farther. "I had the blood tests done, I had an MRI. They ran all the necessary tests to see if I'm a match." He challenged.

"You did not!" She exclaimed angrily.

"I'm an adult." He said stubbornly. "I'm an adult, and I get to make adult decisions. My decision is to override yours." He replied. "You cannot tell me what to do anymore, GG." He shook his head. "If I want to risk my life for my brother, then so be it. If you care about Mom then you will let me do this for her, and you won't let her get tested. Because if she gets tested, and we find that she's not a match, it'll kill her." He whispered. "Do you want to kill her?" He asked angrily as he watched her face become more stubborn with each passing second.

Richie had seen this look on his grandmother's face. He had seen the explosions of the past that followed that look. He was challenging her, and she knew it. No one ever survived one of those looks from his grandmother without some kind of pain, and he was ready for it. "You…" She said with a bony finger pointing in his direction, releasing a huff of air out her nose as she glared at him. "You…" She shook her head.

"There's nothing you can do about it." He replied. "If I'm a match, I'm giving him my liver." He said sternly. "I already signed the paperwork."

"Richard…" She growled, sucking in through her nose as she continued to glare, shaking her head.

"GG." He said, watching her try to formulate her response.

"Get the results from the tests." She said sternly. "You get the results from those tests." She said as she continued to stare into his eyes. "I have patients to go see!" She said as she turned and walked away, trying her best not to look defeated as she cringed at her excuse.

"You don't even work at this hospital!" Richard exclaimed after his grandmother as she continued down the hallway toward Greyson's room, waving her hand at him in annoyance.

"Just get those results, Richard!" She exclaimed as she turned and disappeared into her grandson's room, as Richie turned sharply and took off in the other direction.

* * *

Ellis walked into the hospital room to find Meredith and Derek standing over Greyson's bed as he looked up at them. Meredith was holding her son's hand as Derek stood with his body against hers, watching Greyson as he looked up at them with a deep, sad fear that seemed to be sucking the life from his frail looking form. His head turned to his grandmother. "GG." He whispered as he turned his head to his parents. "What's going on?" He whispered as Meredith squeezed his hand.

"You're sick, kid." Ellis said matter of factly as he approached the bed.

"Thanks, GG." Greyson replied as his eyes flashed to his mother. "Is anyone going to tell me what's going on? How did I get here?" He whispered. "What happened to my arm?"

Derek's eyes flashed to Ellis, who approached the bed quickly. She wanted so much to examine him, poke him, prod him and find out exactly what was wrong with him herself. The waiting was the worst part, the waiting was painful, and for a woman who usually never waited for anyone for anything, this was torture. "We're waiting for your doctor." Ellis whispered, watching Derek's eyes move back to his son.

"You got into a car accident with Richie, sweetheart." Meredith whispered.

"I did?" Greyson asked. "Where's Richie? Is he alright?" Grey said with a panicked look in his eyes as he moved slightly in the bed, feeling the pain in his arm, he cringed. "Is he okay?"

"He's alright, he's alright." Derek said, reaching forward to put his hand on his son's arm as Greyson calmed and looked into his father's eyes.

"You have that look, Dad." He whispered as he moved his eyes to his mother. "You too, Mom, are you sure Richie is okay?" He asked, his mind still cloudy from the night's events, his body was clearly exhausted and his mind was merely following suit.

"You need your rest, don't worry about Richard." Ellis said softly as she glanced to her grandson, though Derek's eyes were on his mother in law's eyes, and he knew that she was hiding something from him.

"Where is he?" Derek asked, his voice was on the verge of accusatory, and the tone did not slip past Ellis unnoticed.

"He's being examined because of the accident." Ellis replied. "They just wanted to do one or two more tests to make sure that he's alright." She said as Derek stared intensely into her eyes. He knew that there was more to the story, and he also knew that he wasn't going to get any more out of Ellis at that moment.

The door to the room opened, and another doctor stepped into the room. He looked like he had been roused from his bed, and tried to put on a professional face through his obviously tired expression. "I'm Doctor Thompson." He said with a pause as he reached for Derek's hand. "I'm assuming you're Greyson's parents?"

"Doctor Shepherd." He said softly as he shook his hand politely and nodded.

"Doctor Shepherd…" The doctor nodded as if he had heard the name before, but sighed as he took a deep breath, knowing that there were other, more important things to deal with. "Well, Doctor Shepherd." He said softly. "I've taken a look at Greyson's chart." He said as he opened the chart. "And, there is obvious signs of liver failure, and we're testing for possible kidney failure as well." He said softly. "Unfortunately, the damage to the liver has been extensive, and as far as the preliminary tests are showing, he is going to have to have a transplant, and the extent of the damage is showing that he is going to need one immediately. We put him on the transplant list, though we recommend that all family members who are likely to be a match be tested to determine if…"

"I'm going to be tested." Meredith said softly as she looked up at the doctor. "I am going to be tested. I want blood tests, an MRI, CT. I want to be tested, I will be tested. I…"

"You can't be tested, Meredith." Ellis said, her eyes flashing to Derek as she looked back to Meredith. "You can't be tested."

"What do you mean I can't be tested?"

"Doctor Grey." Derek said, his voice was high and nervous.

"Derek and I will be tested, but Meredith cannot be tested, Doctor Thompson." Ellis said matter of factly.

"Mom?" Meredith said, her voice was high and concerned.

"GG, Mom said that she…" Greyson said softly.

"Your mother will not be tested." Ellis said to the doctor. "She was stuck by a needle last week during surgery. She can't be tested for this, she is in quarantine."

"I was not stuck by a needle, Mom!"

"Being stuck by a needle, that makes you ineligible for donation." Doctor Thompson said softly.

"I was not stuck by a needle! Derek! Tell him! Tell him that I can be tested!" Meredith exclaimed as she pushed on Derek, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Derek!"

Derek looked between his wife's hysterical tears, her fear, her sadness, her desperation. He looked to Ellis, whose head shook very lightly as she looked into Derek's eyes. "Derek, she was stuck by a needle, wasn't she?"

"Dad?" Greyson whispered.

Derek paused as he continued to stare at Ellis, his eyes moving quickly to the doctor. "She isn't eligible, Doctor Thompson." He said in a breathless sigh. "Doctor Grey and I will be tested though." He said as Meredith pulled out of Derek's grip.

"Derek!" She shouted.

"Meredith, you have to calm down!" Derek said softly as he took a step toward her.

"I will not calm down! I will not calm down!" She exclaimed as she reached forward and slapped Derek across the face. She looked him right in the eyes as she shook her head. "I hate you right now, Derek Shepherd." She growled. "Right now, I hate you." She said as she turned and stomped out of the room as quickly as she could.

Derek paused for a moment, his eyes moving to his son who lie in the bed, his sickly body frail and motionless as his eyes passed to his grandmother and his doctor, then back to his father. "What did you do, Dad?" He whispered.

"He did what he had to do, Greyson." Ellis whispered. "She doesn't realize it right now, but he did what he had to do."


	9. Moment of Truth

He lay on his side, his eyes closed, his body exhausted. He had no idea how long he had been sleeping, his watch having been taken off for the MRI and CT. He was in a state of half sleep, when he heard the gentle squeaking of the door, and had to think for a moment to remember where he was. He kept his eyes closed, as he listened to the sound of someone either entering the room, or seeing that it was occupied, and the squeaking of the door, the snap of the latch hitting the doorframe as he lay listening.

He heard nothing, assuming that the visitor had made themselves scarce, recognizing that the small room was, indeed occupied. He lay with his eyes closed, his ribs stinging with each breath as he tried to will himself to move. He lay atop the squeaky mattress, his eyelids being his current focus for the time being as he thought about the circumstances around his arrival to this room. It was not long after his mother had stormed from his brother's room, and he had been down the hallway waiting at the lab for the results of the testing. His grandmother had come into the room, watching his exhausted expression as he nearly fell asleep in the waiting room chair.

She had taken his arm and led him to a nurse's desk, where they informed his grandmother of an open on call room where he could rest, his grandmother promised that she would find him when the results were available. He had laid down slowly, the mattress enveloping his body, and thought it was old and creaky, it was perfectly fine for him. He had pulled his hands to his face for a moment, the faded numbers on his hands staring into his face as he took a slow deep breath and closed his fist on them, trying desperately to ignore their presence as he forced himself to sleep.

He could feel his mouth hanging open slightly, and attempted to move, the stiffness in his body was incredible, and he found his body unable to move. He groaned slightly as he tried to lift his arm, only feeling an intense pain shooting up his muscles, sending a wave of shivers down his spine as the white hot pain slammed into his body. "Oh fuck…" He muttered as he tried to move his neck, feeling that his neck was far too stiff to turn, or even tip back. "Oh, fuck… fuck, fuck…" He groaned as he rolled to his side, his eyes clenched in pain as he grimaced in pain.

"I told you that it was going to hurt in the morning." A young woman's voice skipped it's way across his eardrum as he remained awkwardly lying there, his back nearly flat against the mattress, his legs still bent in the direction of the wall. He kept his eyes closed and tried to place a face with the voice.

"Shit." He muttered as he came face to face with a well rested Harper, standing over him with her arms over her chest.

"Shit?" She said as she raised her eyebrow, her eyes gleaming down on the young man as he turned his body toward the wall. "I save you from certain death, and all you can say is 'shit'?"

"I thought you left." He muttered as he stared at the wall.

"I did leave."

"And now you're back." He muttered.

"I came back for my car, Einstein." She said as she sat down on the bed, sending it sinking a couple of inches.

"I don't see your car in here, Einstein." He muttered grumpily as he continued to stare at the wall. "How did you find me, anyway?" He asked, trying to turn his head, he grimaced in pain. "Fuck." He whispered as he moved it back.

She moved forward and crouched down beside the bed. "Here…" She said as she reached for his shoulder, he moved forward out of her reach and she sighed. "Cut it out, I'm not going to rape you." She shook her head as he tried to turn his head to glare at her. "I asked your father where you were." She said softly as her fingertips touched his shoulder.

"Where was he?" Richie asked, feeling her fingers gently pushing into his body, tender touches melting into his muscles.

"He was outside your brother's room. Someone, I'm assuming it was your mother, was inside, and he didn't want to disturb them. He told me what was going on with your brother." She whispered. "I don't understand why he was waiting outside the room though." She said.

"They're not talking." Richie whispered as Harper continued to move her hand, working the muscle in his shoulder, touching his neck gently. She watched as a trail of goosebumps raised on his neck as she touched his skin, she tried to ignore the scent of his cologne as it drifted into her nostrils.

"Does that feel any better?" She asked, watching him stare at the wall, she pulled her hands from his shoulders and he turned his head slightly. She noticed there was no wince in his movement, but he stared into her eyes for a second as he swallowed hard.

"It's still a little sore." He whispered, turning his head away from her, she tipped him forward slightly, sending him pushing his chest against the bed, his head turning in her direction as she stood up, sitting carefully on the bed. "Why did you look for me?" He mumbled into the pillow, feeling her hand move over his entire back, working its way down his muscle groups, pressing, prodding, poking, massaging. Trying to pull the stress from his body slowly.

"Does that feel good?" She whispered, ignoring his question as he nodded into the pillow. "Good." She whispered as she continued to massage his back. "Are you feeling better?" She asked as he groaned in satisfaction of her touch, her voice was tender and soft as he nodded. "Good." She said as she said breathily into his ear, her breath sending shivers down his spine as her finger lifted slowly without him knowing. "Then you won't mind if I do this…" She said as she flicked his ear hard with her finger and stood up, watching him roll onto his back and howl in pain.

"What the fuck was that for?!" He exclaimed as he grabbed his ear, looking at her angrily.

"That's for treating me like shit yesterday, you little runt." She said as she leaned down and stared into his eyes. "And so is this." She said as she leaned forward quickly and pushed her lips against his, hard and passion filled, slipping her tongue into his mouth for a moment as he kissed her back. The moment she felt his hand reach to touch her cheek, she pulled herself back and stared at him with wide eye surprise. She ran her tongue over her lips for a moment as she watched him swallow hard, his own tongue running over his lips as she glanced to the door. "I…" She swallowed hard. "I have to go now. I have to get my car." She mumbled as she took a step backwards.

"Harper?" Richie said as he whispered her name, unsure of what to say.

"I… I really have to go… I… I hope your brother feels better." She said quickly as she turned and fled the room.

"Harper!" He exclaimed as the door clicked behind her, and by the time he was able to leap from the bed and swing open the door, she was nowhere in sight.

* * *

Richie practically ran from the on call room, not having any idea what way to go, he turned toward the stairs. He climbed down the stairs quickly, listening for any sounds of the fleeing woman, hearing none. "Harper!" Richie exclaimed as he slammed his feet down the stairs until he reached the floor of the lobby, slamming his hands into the door, he swung it open and stepped out into the hallway. He ran around the corner to the quiet lobby, and peered toward the front doors of the hospital. He could see the automatic doors of the hospital closing beyond the front desk and waiting room chairs, and picked up his speed to nearly a full run as he made his way out of the hospital into the cold, whistling wind that slammed into him as soon as he stepped out the doors. He nearly stopped, his pace slowing as he got to the curb, his head snapping this way and that, the cold winter wind pushing his hair this way and that as he looked around the parking lot for Harper's SUV. The sky was lightening up, the signs of early morning were brightening up the overcast sky as the clouds glowed with a dark, foreboding gray color that matched the mood of the situation. Richie was breathing heavily, his heart pounding in his chest as he felt a guttural groan lifting through his body as he heard a slight whimper escape his lips. He had no idea why he was chasing her, he only knew that he needed to find her.

He paused for a moment, letting his tongue run the length of his lip, he could still taste her mouth on his, and he knew why he needed to find her. He looked to his hand, the faded phone number was barely visible, but when he pulled his cell phone from his pocket, he remembered why he hadn't called her. The phone was dead. "Shit!" He exclaimed to himself as he slammed the phone in his pocket. "Shit, Shit, shit!" He exclaimed as he slammed his foot into the ground.

"Shit?" A voice rang out over his swearing fit, his eyes lifting to meet a set of familiar eyes, staring at the shivering young man as he stood staring at her. "I thought that greeting was reserved for people that saved your life and you never wanted to see again." She said as she shivered against the brick façade of the building, her arms crossed over her chest as she trembled.

"You didn't leave." He breathed as he approached her slowly, knowing that he was already on thin, cracking ice, and that one wrong move or word would most likely send her disappearing to her car, and out of his life forever. He needed to take pause, he needed to be careful in this delicate situation.

"Obviously." She said stubbornly, her eyes staring into his as she watched him approach, fully aware of her escape route to her car if she needed it.

"You didn't leave…" He said again, still unsure if his eyes had deceived him, and he was just suffering some sort of post traumatic hallucination, talking to a brick column that would force his father to have him committed to a mental hospital. "Why didn't you leave?"

"I left yesterday." She said shrugging. "And I came back."

"For your car." He said.

"For you." She shrugged. "I came back to talk to you." She said as she shivered. He stepped closer to her and put his hands on her arms.

"You don't even know me." He said with a half smile, watching as she closed her eyes for a second, obviously trying to hold in her embarrassment. "Where is your coat?" he asked as he shook his head, rubbing her arms through the thin sweater that she was wearing, watching her cheeks turn pink as she tilted her head.

"It's in my car, Richard. It's filthy, and torn, and covered in your brother's blood." She said with a stern tone. She watched his eyes glaze over slightly as he bit his lower lip. "Richard, are you alright?" She asked as she felt his warm hands rubbing her arms lightly, his eyes holding a deep sadness that she was trying to understand. "What is going on with Greyson?" She asked innocently as she watched him shiver. "Jesus, you're freezing."

"I'm fine." He said as he stared into her eyes. "Grey needs a new liver. You said you talked to my father."

"He said it was liver failure. He didn't go into detail, he needs a new liver? Is he being transferred? Is he staying here? Is he on the list for a new liver? Is he going to be alright? What happened? Is it…?"

"Shh." He said, lifting his hand slightly, his fingertip touching her trembling lip. "Just, shut up for a second." He said as he took a slow, deep breath and stared into her eyes as his hand moved back down to her arm.

"Are you going to say something?" She asked as she continued to feel his hands slowly moving up and down her arms, sending shocks of warmth through her body.

"When do you have to be home?" He asked as he watched her give him a confused expression.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean can you stay for a little while?" he asked as she nodded her head.

"Good." He said as he grabbed her hand and started to pull her toward the hospital.

"Wait!" She exclaimed as she went along with him, a slight laugh leaving her lips. "Where are you taking me?"

"We need to find my grandmother." He said as he pulled her along, his hand sliding down her arm to her hand as they hurried together back into the hospital.

* * *

Richie pulled Harper along into the hospital to the elevator. He slammed his finger down on the button and paused, waiting for the door to open. "What do you need me here for?" She asked, humored by his determination and the way he continued to press the elevator button, using his persistence as an excuse not to look at her. "Richard?" She asked as she watched him slam his finger down on the button one more time, she reached across and grabbed his hand, his eyes snapping to hers. "Slamming your hand down on the button isn't going to get the elevator here any faster." She said as he didn't say anything else, only pulled his hand out of her grip and pushed the button again, the elevator opened, and he turned and smirked at her.

"That is a coincidence." She said as he laughed, pulling her into the elevator with him.

Once the elevator door was closed, he reached across to press the button on the panel, when she stood in front of him. "Hey." He said as he tried to reach around her.

"Wait." She said, pushing him back slightly as he turned her around, putting his back up against the panel as he tilted his head curiously.

"Wait for what?"

"Are we okay?" She asked, tilting her head as she watched him try not to smirk at her.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" He asked. "Are we okay after you caused me severe emotional pain and suffering when you flicked my ear? Is that what we were talking about? Because that was really, really mean."

"Richard." She grumbled.

"Or are you talking about the severe emotional pain you caused me when you kissed me?" He asked as a smile began to rise on his lips. She growled at him, her eyes narrowing as she reached her hand up to his ear. He covered his ear with his hand and swatted at her. "Hey, I'm not falling for that one again." He said as she turned around and walked across the elevator, turning sharply, she crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. "We're fine." He shrugged as he turned, pushed the button for the right floor and tipped his head in her direction. "Trust me." He said as he nodded, wiggling his eyebrows at her. "We are very fine."

"It was a moment of weakness." She muttered as he shook his head and chuckled to himself.

"Hm…" He nodded as the elevator door opened on the correct floor. "Well then, I'm looking forward to many more moments of weakness." He said as he reached across for her hand, listening to her slight giggle as they walked out of the elevator together.

"There will be no more moments of weakness!" She exclaimed as she walked with him. "No more moments of weakness." She said as he continued to tug her along.

"You say that now." He teased as he walked toward his brother's room, he stopped outside and peeked in. Meredith was sitting by her son's bedside, Greyson asleep. Her eyes were open as she stared at her son's hand, her eyes and body language screamed of exhaustion. "Mom?" He whispered as her eyes lifted immediately to the sound of his voice, she noted that his hand was in someone elses, but that person was still standing outside of the room.

"Richie?" She whispered as she tilted her head.

"Mom, is he…?"

"He's stable, sweetheart."

"Do they know anything else?" Richie whispered as she shook her head. "Do you know where GG went?"

"Your father and GG are trying to diagnose. Richie, who is that?" She asked as she tilted her head forward, watching as Richie pulled Harper into the room, taking a step farther into the room.

"This is Harper." Richie said as he pulled her in front of him. "She's a friend." He said nodding. "She was the one that got us out of the car. So I guess she's kind of our hero or something." He said, feeling her pointy elbow shove into his ribs. "Ow… uncalled for!" He grunted as Harper smiled politely at Meredith.

"Doctor Shepherd." She said with a smile as she shook her hand.

"She's a med student. She's read all your work, blah, blah blah." Richie said as Harper scowled at him.

"Richard." Meredith said with a scowl.

"Sorry."

"Harper, thank you." She said as she glanced to Greyson. "Thank you very much for being there for my boys."

"Where did you say GG is?" Richie asked as he glanced to his brother. "I had a question to ask her about something." He said, finding it obvious that his mother didn't know that he had been tested for a match, she looked at him blankly for a second.

"She's… She's down the hallway in the library… medical library. The nurse will let you know." Meredith nodded.

"Mom, have you talked to Dad?" Richie asked as Meredith turned her head toward Greyson.

"He's there too." She said as she sadly made her way toward the bed. "It was nice to meet you , Harper."

"It was nice to meet you, Doctor Shepherd." Harper said quickly as she felt Richie grab her hand, and pull her.

"We'll be back in a couple minutes." He said to his mother as they walked toward the door. "I love you, Mom." He said, fully aware that it was his pleading warning that was at the root of the rift between his parents.

"I love you too, Richie." She whispered, as she never took her eyes off Greyson, only hearing the click of the door as Richie and Harper disappeared through it.

* * *

Richie rushed down the hallway, his hand grasping Harper's, when he suddenly realized that it may be a tad presumptuous of him to be holding her hand as if he expected her to accept it. As his hand slipped from hers, however, she moved and gripped his again, watching his head turn and their eyes meet as she watched a smirk rise on his face. She shook her head and continued to grip his hand, though she could feel the color rising in her cheeks.

They turned the corner and found a nurse, Richie releasing Harper's hand as he approached the nurse. "Sir?" He asked as the nurse looked up from the chart he was working on. "I was wondering if you can tell me where the library is?"

"Down this hallway two doors from the left, I wouldn't really call it a library though." The nurse said as he smiled at Harper.

"Thank you." Harper said with a sweet smile as the nurse smiled back.

"Alright, let's go." Richie said as he tugged her along, listening to her laugh as she followed him.

"Ha, jealousy, it's adorable." She said as she felt his fingers slipping from hers again, she grabbed his wrist and yanked his arm as he twisted and faced her. "Cut it out." She said as he just smirked and shook his head.

"What are you looking for, anyway?" He asked as she glared at him, their eyes locked a battle for control as they both refused to relinquish it. "Harper?" He asked.

She could feel a lump forming in her throat, the regret and sorrow in Richie's eyes made her just want to grab him and hug him, though his question made her want to kick him as hard as she could. "I…" She paused as she watched him tilt his head, an obvious indication that he was listening intently. "I just want to find your grandmother." She said as she released his hand and pushed him lightly in front of her, letting him lead as they walked down the hallway together toward the library.

Richie felt guilty for making her feel awkward, the look in her eyes was one filled with confusion, as she had pushed him in front of her. He just wanted to take a second, to talk to her alone, but he also knew that he needed to talk to his grandmother. He rounded the corner, and immediately heard the sound of his father sighing loudly, and he stopped short in front of the door as Harper smashed into him. The soft collision against him made him turn sharply as he made sure she was alright.

"What did you stop for?" She asked, her voice was showing her irritation as he pushed her softly backwards.

"I'm not ready to go in there yet."

"Why not?" She asked, glancing around Richie to the door. "Why do we need to find your grandmother anyway? They're trying to diagnose your brother, how are we going to help that?"

"No." Richie replied as he took a slow, deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment. "She probably has the results of the tests that they did last night."

"Tests?"

"For a match for Greyson. She and my father were going to be tested and if there was a match, the surgery was going to be scheduled immediately."

"And you wanted to know which one of them were a match?" She said, trying to understand his reasoning.

"I wanted to know if I was a match." Richie said as he turned away from her, taking a step toward the room.

"Wait." She said, grabbing his shoulder, he turned his head as he stood by the doorway. "You were tested too?"

"Yes." He said as he watched her eyes, a slight sense of panic slipped over her features as she tried to understand what Richie was saying.

"You're volunteering yourself for a surgery that you don't know if it'll work?" She said as she watched Richie nod his head. "A surgery that is very often more dangerous for the person donating than it is for the person receiving?" He asked.

"I guess." Richie said as he shrugged.

"You just, volunteered up one of your organs for your brother?"

"Yes." Richie said, shaking his head. "Is that so hard to believe?"

"Um…" She paused for a second as she swallowed hard. "I just…" She shrugged as she watched the curiosity in his eyes.

"You just what?" he asked as she became slightly defensive, the way she was looking at him, he was starting to feel very self conscious, and he shook his head as he stared into her eyes. "You just figured that I'm not a risk taker, huh?" he asked as she reached out for his arm, grabbing him before he walked away.

"I've known you for less than twenty four hours, Richard." She said as she held his arm tightly. "I can't make an assumption like that."

"We can talk about this later." He said, swallowing as he started to walk, her hand still holding his arm tightly as he rounded the corner and walked into the room.

* * *

The room really wasn't much of a library, two walls covered in books, it was a closet compared to the library at Boston General. Derek and Ellis sat on opposite ends of the table, staring into books as they flipped pages and read through the various cases.

"It's about time you two stopped your little bickering fit in the hallway and walked in here." Ellis said without looking up at the two that had entered the room.

"How did she…?" Harper started to ask as Derek continued to look through his book.

"Don't ask, she's got sonic hearing or something." Derek muttered. "I think it's got something to do with her being Satan, but none of us are completely sure." He said as Harper just stared.

"It would be a lot more helpful if you'd keep your trap shut, and tried to figure out what killed your son's liver instead of trying to be a vaudeville entertainer." Ellis replied as she flipped another page.

"A vaudeville entertainer? What is this, the twenties? Maybe if you dug yourself out of your dinosaur hole, you could help figure it out. Are you over there looking up fossil recipes, or are you trying to diagnose? Because I don't see you coming up with any ideas." Derek snapped back as he looked up at Ellis, who just continued to flip pages.

Harper's head was snapping between the two doctors as they snapped at one another, and eventually her eyes made their way back to Richie. "Are they always like this to one another?"

"It's their little way of dealing with things." He said as he shrugged. "That little exchange was mild, practically a hug for the two of them." He said as if they were not in the room.

"What about hemochromatosis?" Derek asked as he looked up at Ellis.

"His iron levels are fine." She mumbled under her breath as she slammed the book closed, making Richie and Harper jump. "So you're awake?" She sighed loudly as Richie stood awkwardly in the doorway. "And who is this? This isn't Lisa. Are you trying to be your father? Flitting around the hospital with pretty little things on your arm until you get tired of them?"

"I was never like that, Ellis." Derek said as he continued to read through a book. "That's Harper." He said, looking up at her, their eyes meeting. "Richie and Lisa broke up nearly a month ago." He shook his head.

"Oh yes! The girl who wanted to wait…"

"GG." Richie whispered.

"Richard is a good boy, trying to be patient with his little flower, until he…"

"GG!" Richie growled.

"He walked in on the little flower while she was in the middle of…"

"Ellis." Derek said, her face snapping in Derek's direction. "I think she gets the point."

"I get the point." Harper nodded as Richie stood beside her with his face in his hands, his ears burning red.

"Harper is the young lady who helped Richie and Greyson. She's a third year med student, pretty smart." Derek said with a polite smile to her.

"She caused the accident." Richie said, watching as Harper glared at him, only to find that mischievous glint in his eyes, her glare softened as she elbowed him.

"Ow…" Richie groaned as he grabbed his side, catching Ellis' attention.

"I like her already." She said with a smile as she opened another book. "Third year med student, huh?"

"Yes, Ma'am." She said politely as Derek chuckled to himself.

"What are you laughing at, Doctor Doom?" Ellis asked as she glared across the table at Derek.

"Nothing." Derek said as he glared at her. "Why don't you two sit down and help. We can use all the eyes we can get." Derek said as he smiled at Harper and Richie as they smiled and walked to the corner to get a chair. As they moved toward the chairs, Harper's eyes suddenly lit up. She turned and grabbed Richie's arm and started pulling him out of the room.

"What was that?" Derek asked as the two of them disappeared out the door and into the hallway.

"Sometimes women have needs, Derek." Ellis muttered without looking up at him. "But then again, what do you know about that?" She said as Derek continued to glare at her, as she only smirked and flipped to another page.

* * *

Harper dragged Richie into the hallway and turned him around sharply. His arm flew from her hand as he backed himself against the wall on the other side of the doorway. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Your brother." She said as she looked at him with a perplexed glance. "Your brother…"

"My brother? What about him?"

"I think I know what's wrong with him." She said as she stared into his eyes, trying not to smile, she didn't know what else to say.

"You think you know what's wrong with him? Then why did you drag me out here? They're the doctors, not me." He said as he turned toward the room.

"No." She said, grabbing his arm. "They not going to listen to me. I'm just a med student. Doctors never listen to a med student. Not big time doctors like them, I'm sure they've already ruled it out." She whispered

"They'll listen to you. What's the worst that could happen?"

"I embarrass myself in front of two world famous surgeons. That's a great idea."

"Give me a break, it's my father and grandmother. I embarrass myself in front of them on a daily basis."

"Richard, I can't." Harper said as she felt him tugging on her arm. "Richard! Stop!"

"This is my brother's life. If you have any clue on how to make him better, I want you to tell me right now. Put your goddamned fucking pride on hold for ten seconds and just tell me what you think is wrong with him!" Richie exclaimed as he grabbed her arm, feeling her pull away from him, he felt guilty for being so forceful, her eyes showing a tinge of fear within them. "Please!" he begged.

"His eyes." She whispered as she turned toward away from him.

"There's something wrong with his eyes?"

"No, we have to check his eyes."

"Greyson's?"

"Yes." She replied. "We have to check for copper build up in his eyes. Wilson's disease, it's a hereditary disease caused by the inability for the liver to rid the body of copper. Through the person's life, the copper builds up in their system and causes liver failure, kidney failure, psychological disorders. It has to be Wilson's!"

"Wilson's disease?" Richie asked as he looked toward the room.

"Yes. Your dad and grandmother would know about it. It's very rare though, which is why I think it's a long shot."

"A long shot is better than no shot!" Richie said as he held his hand out to her. "I want you to tell them." Richie said as he moved his fingers.

"You can tell them. I… I should go. My dad is probably wondering why I'm not back yet." She said as she took a step backwards.

"No." Richie said as he reached farther for her. "Please?" He begged. "I need you to do this. I need you to tell them, I'm not knowledgeable in this stuff. I'm just a kid. You're in med school. Tell them."

"Richard."

"Tell them please?" Richie said as he sighed. "Please?"

"You have to go with me."

"I'll go with you." Richie said as he nodded toward the room.

"And you're not a kid." She said as she shook her head. "You're only a couple of years younger than me, and not very far behind me in stubbornness."

"Stop flirting with me, and save my brother's life." He said with a smirk as he held his hand out to her, he watched as her cheeks blushed and her jaw dropped slightly.

"You are so full of yourself." She said as she laughed out loud, taking his hand.

"You have no idea." He said as he gripped her hand tightly, and the two of them walked down the hallway a bit, entering the room.

"Did you kids get it all out of your system?" Ellis said as she continued to read the book in front of her.

"I hope you used protection." Derek muttered as Ellis snickered from across the table.

"I'm too young to be a great grandparent." She sighed as she flipped a page.

"Are you two done?" Richie asked as they both looked up at the two of them standing before the table.

"I think so." Ellis said as she looked over to Derek. "You?"

"I think I'm just about done." Derek nodded. "So why the big rush out of here?" He said as he watched the anxious looks on their faces. "What?" He asked as he tilted his head. "You guys are…"

Richie nudged Harper. "Wilson's disease." She blurted out, watching Derek and Ellis stare at her blankly for a moment. Both doctors stared at her, her eyes flashing between Derek and Ellis. "Did you…"

"I heard you." Ellis said as she glanced to Derek. "What do you think, Shepherd?" She asked as he continued to stare at her.

"Have you had his copper levels tested?" Derek asked as he tried to remember.

"I…" Ellis mumbled as she tried to remember.

Richie nudged Harper again. "His eyes." She said as they both looked up at her. "Check Greyson's eyes." She said as she watched the recognition flash over the two doctor's faces. Kayser-Fleischer rings, copper rings around his iris. They should be visible." she said as Derek nodded.

"Well, there's only one way to find out." Derek said as he stood up. He held out his hand to shake Harper's. "If you get this, I owe you." He said as he shook Harper's hand.

"What are you going to give her, Shepherd, your first born child?" Ellis said without thinking, an awkward silence filling the room.

"Let's go see." Derek said as he started for the door. "Future Doctor Sullivan, if you'd like to assist?" he said with a nod toward the door.

"Hell yeah!" She said excitedly as she took a step, shaking her head as she cringed. "I mean, um sure." She said as she followed Derek out. Derek walked quickly with Harper right behind him, when Richie went to follow however, he felt a strong hand on his shoulder.

"GG?" He said as he turned toward his grandmother as she stared up at him, her stature much smaller than his, he looked down at her, standing nearly a foot shorter than him.

"You think you're a man now, do you? No longer a little boy?" She said, her voice was strong and foreign, as she stared him into the eyes.

"Yes."

"You're an adult. Standing up to me like that. You should be proud of yourself. It didn't take half as long as I thought it would." She said as she watched him stand, taking a step back.

"What are you talking about?" Richie asked as Ellis shook her head.

"You're the boss now, Richard." She said as she turned and stepped to the table. She reached for a drawer, and pulled it out, lifting three folders from within it. She turned toward her grandson and stepped toward him. "You stood up to me and you made a valid point. Your mother couldn't have handled the disappointment of knowing that she wouldn't be a candidate for donation for Greyson."

"GG, you're scaring me." He whispered.

"You're an adult now, you can make adult decisions. You can also make adult announcements." Ellis said sternly. "That is why you're going to be the one to tell your parents that of the three tested, you're the only valid candidate for donation, Richard. It's going to be up to you to save your brother's life." She said, giving him a stern stare as she watched his jaw drop just slightly.

"GG." He whispered.

"I have to check on your brother." She said, turning on her heel, she walked out of the room briskly, leaving her grandson with the three lab folders in his hand and his jaw hanging open in shock.


	10. Panic Vs Peace

Richie stood in the room for a moment, staring after the exit of his grandmother, a thousand thoughts running through his mind. He felt a deep sense of panic rising through his body, sending his heart pounding violently. He had witnessed his grandmother's power plays for years, always on the verge of tormenting to her doctors, and always tormenting for his father. He kept hearing her voice echoing in his mind, and the more he thought about the situation at hand, the more frightening it became.

He turned swiftly and grabbed three large medical books, tucking them clumsily into his arms. He grabbed his father's forgotten cell phone from the table, hidden beneath several papers that had been shuffled during their search, and he shoved it into his pocket. With one more look around the room, he took off out the door, and didn't turn toward his brother's room, instead he ran for the stairwell, praying for solace on another floor. He was hoping that he could find some peace to work out a game plan on revealing this frightening news to his parents.

He could feel his insides twisting, the sharp pain of an empty stomach wrenching at his other organs, his head dizzy not only from the news from his grandmother, but from the lack of sugar in his system. He slammed open the door of a darkened wing of the hospital, a quiet corner that he could sit and think things out while his father tried to reveal the true cause of his brother's ailment. He prayed that Harper was right, though he had no idea what it meant for his brother. This disease that she had exclaimed could be at the bottom of his brother's years of psychological and physical pain, and also could be the key to his survival and his longevity. Richie slammed the books in his arms down on an abandoned gurney, sliding his body onto the creaky old bed, he began to flip through the old Medical book in the dim hallway, trying to learn as much as he could about this monster of a disease, and the procedures that his brother would be forced to undergo.

Copper.

Fatal.

Inherited.

Undiagnosed.

Neurological and Psychological disorders.

Often mistaken for behavioral issues.

Tremors.

Aggression.

Depression.

Hallucinations.

Liver.

Cirrhosis.

Kidney failure.

Transplant, only cure.

Inherited.

The words melted into Richard's mind, his hands were sweaty and his mouth was dry. He felt that his entire body was betraying him. He felt that his entire being was breaking apart. He felt lost and alone, and he didn't know which way to turn. His parents were going to be devastated by the news. His father and grandmother weren't a match, and he had made a hopeful declaration to his grandmother that his mother not be tested. What good would it do? She was a carrier. He could be a carrier, his sister. How do you solve something like this? He looked at the genetics of the situation, the makeup of how his brother had gotten the disease. His eyes poured over the information in front of him, soaking it all in as he tried to understand.

Siblings: One in four chance.

"I have to be tested. Mariellis." He whispered to himself as he looked up, staring at the wall, he shook his head. "Shit." He whispered. "Mom is going to blame herself for this, blame Dad." He whimpered as he looked to the ceiling, his eyes dropping to the pages, he could feel a lump forming in his throat, he could feel tears beginning to form in his eyes.

"Some neuropsychological functions may not be restored." He whispered as he bit his lip. "Why am I doing this to myself?" He whimpered as he read the last line of the article.

"If left untreated, Wilson's disease is fatal." Richie slammed the book closed and threw it across the hall against the wall. Several pages of the old book flew from its binding as he let his head drop into his hands, and began to cry.

* * *

From the moment she left the library, to now as she stood just inside the room of Greyson Shepherd, Harper was overwhelmed. Derek had all but shoved her into the room of his son, his tall frame sliding across the room toward his wife as she looked up at him. Her eyes were hopeful as Harper watched his wife feel his excitement from the doorway, as it rose her from her chair and forced her to step to his frame and grab his arm as he declared that he needed more testing done on Greyson.

"I need an ophthalmic slit lamp! I need his urine and blood tested for copper. I need a ceruloplasmin test done, and STAT!" Derek exclaimed to the nurses in the room as Meredith watched them scurry.

"Derek?" Meredith said, her eyes only on his as she spoke, her hands were trembling as she gripped his arms. "What's going on, what did you figure out?" She asked, her lips were also trembling as he pulled his hands down slightly and gripped them tightly.

"Wilson's disease." He whispered.

"Wilson's?" She whispered, her eyes staring into Derek's as she wracked her brain to remember something, anything about the disease that Derek had said to her. She shook her head as if she were trying to rile it up in her memory, that shaking her head would bring about a quicker answer.

"Copper buildup." Derek replied. "I… I think…"

"That's hereditary." She said, her eyes widening as she stared into his eyes, the surprise and shock in her face sent a shudder down his spine.

"Meredith…" He shook his head.

"No!" She exclaimed, looking to her son lying in the bed.

"Meredith, stop!" Derek said as he jerked her attention back to him. "It doesn't matter where it came from, who gave it to him. It doesn't matter… none of that matters, Meredith. The only thing that matters… is that… if these tests confirm it, then we know." Derek said softly. "We know what is hurting him, and we'll be able to do all that we can to help him… all that we can to get him better."

"But his liver, Derek." Meredith whimpered. "His kidneys could be damaged… his… oh Derek, he could have brain damage!" She exclaimed as she covered her mouth with her hand. "Why didn't we see this earlier, why didn't we see this? We're doctors! We should have known!"

"Um…" Harper said as both of their attention was brought to the young woman who was standing in the doorway. "Wilson's disease is an orphan disease." She said in a soft, nervous sigh, watching as they stared at her blankly. "Rare." She said quickly, as both doctors swallowed. "Less than 200,000 Americans suffer from it… it's very often mistaken for behavioral problems, Alzheimer's, and other neurological disorders. It's only seen in about 1 in 25,000 people… and its… um… it's an autosomal recessive disorder, meaning that… that you both… have the recessive trait for it… and… and Greyson… unfortunately has both of your recessive traits… and Richie has a one in four chance of also having it." She mumbled as she watched them stare at her. "I'm sorry." She whispered, thinking that these were surgeons, doctors, people who had been practicing for years. They knew what Wilson's disease was, yet they stood staring at her like deer caught in headlights.

"Don't apologize to those two, dear." Ellis said as she walked past Harper into the room. "They're so wrapped up in themselves, they probably didn't even notice you were talking."

"Mom…" Meredith said as she sighed, looking to her mother as Ellis shook her head and approached the bed where Greyson was sleeping. She reached her hand up and touched her grandson's forehead.

"My poor little prince." She whispered as she glanced up at Derek. "Did you order the tests?" She asked as Derek nodded, pulling Meredith closer to him as she buried her face in his chest.

Ellis' eyes moved to Harper, who was standing awkwardly in the doorway. She was beginning to feel out of place, the initial excitement over her diagnosis had whistled away with the breeze following the doctors out the door as they rushed to arrange the tests and find the eye lamp that Derek had ordered them to get. She took another step toward the door as Ellis glanced to Derek.

"Did you tell Meredith who won?" Ellis asked sharply as Derek gave her a confused look.

"It's alright." Harper said softly as Ellis approached her.

"No… no, it's not alright. You did it without books, without a chart. You did it from memory, and you did it well. Orphan diseases are very difficult to diagnose, and you were right on top of this, you should be proud of yourself."

"We don't know that is the…"

"We don't know for certain, but the fact that you brought it to our attention was brilliant. Stop selling yourself short. You're going to be a fantastic doctor, no matter what specialty you go into." Ellis nodded.

"You don't even know me." Harper said nervously as she glanced to Derek as he held his wife tightly. He was watching her carefully.

"She's already read you from cover to cover, Harper." Derek replied. "Just be glad she's not cracking your binding"

"Derek, your metaphors are slipping." Ellis said sharply as the doctor rolled in a scope on a cart. Ellis took charge, and Derek, Meredith and Harper all watched as she readied the scope and moved in on Greyson, moving his head and directing the doctors to do as she says. They kept his eyelid open, the sedatives he had been given were keeping him sleeping as she turned the light on the lamp and looked through the magnifying glass. "For the love of…"

"Was she right?" Derek asked as Meredith pulled her face from her husband's chest. "Mom, was she right?" He asked as Ellis continued to look into his eye.

"Come and look for yourself." Ellis said as she motioned for them to come closer. Meredith moved quicker, moving to the scope, she looked in with wide eyed surprise as she looked up at her mother, and back to Harper.

"You were right." She whispered as she grabbed Derek's hand and pulled on it, bringing him closer. "You were right!" She exclaimed as she moved across the room and embraced the stranger, squeezing her tightly, though she didn't even know who she was, she was another person who was concerned about her son. She was the one that saved him from the snow. She was the one that had seemingly kept Richie sane. She then looked up, pulling herself from Harper's surprised embrace. "Where is Richie?" She asked as she looked to her mother. "Mom, where is…?"

"I don't know, dear. Perhaps he had something important to do." She shrugged as she glanced to Derek, watching as he stared into the scope. "Harper…?" Ellis said, nodding toward the scope.

"No thank you…" Harper whispered, her mind suddenly on the missing older brother, who had seemed so overjoyed at her discovery, yet hadn't arrived with his grandmother.

"Harper, you must see… it's rare, remember? It's imperative to your education to experience everything, and not give up an inch." She nodded definitively as she pushed Derek's shoulders. "Now move away, you oaf, and let the student observe." She said as Derek glared at her.

Harper stepped forward toward the scope, glancing to everyone as they stared at her. She walked over to the magnified glass that was the window to Greyson's pupil, as she observed his blue green eyes up close and personal. Carefully round his iris, however, there was a dark copper colored ring. Copper deposits in his eyes, just as she had suspected. Wilson's disease.

"Amazing." She whispered, as she pushed away from the scope. She watched as Ellis began to disassemble the machine with the help of the doctors. "I…" She whispered as she watched Ellis busying herself, and Derek and Meredith staring at one another once again as they tried to fathom what they could do at this point, when her attention was brought to the doorway as another man entered the room.

"Mark?" Derek said as he breathed a sigh of what Harper perceived as relief.

"Everyone is here." Mark breathed heavily as he shook his head.

"What do you mean everyone is here?" Derek asked as he and Meredith exchanged a look.

"I mean everyone. Everyone is here. Derek, it's Christmas morning." He said, out of breath. "When I got back and told them what had happened, your mother packed everyone and brought them here to be with you and Meredith. They know that they can't be up here in ICU, but they want to be here." Mark explained.

"Mark." Meredith whispered as she swallowed hard, tilting her head as she held tightly to Derek.

"Yes?"

"Thank you." She whispered. "For bringing Christmas." She said as she felt tears coming to her eyes. "I was beginning to think the world was ending here." She whimpered. "And you come in and you bring Christmas morning."

"They're waiting for a prognosis, Doc." Mark said to Derek, as he nodded his head and glanced to Meredith, her eyes already on his face, waiting for him to turn to her.

"Bring me my little girl, please?" She whispered as Derek nodded. He leaned down and kissed her nose delicately as she leaned up and kissed his lips. "I love you, Derek." She whispered.

"I love you, Meri." He said softly as he took a slow, deep breath and looked up. He glanced to the bed where his son lie and said a silent prayer for his safety. He then grasped Meredith's hand one more time, before moving toward the door, and Mark. He turned around to ask Harper if she'd like to go with him, but to his surprise, she had already slipped from the room unnoticed. Derek swallowed as he turned toward Meredith, with a soft blowing kiss, he slipped from the door, leaving Meredith feeling cold, disconnected and alone at the foot of her son's bed, with the start of something warm moving through her veins as she thought of her waiting family downstairs, and how she was never, and would never, ever really be alone.

* * *

Harper walked through the halls of the hospital virtually unnoticed. She traced her steps back toward the library, where she had last seen Richie, only to find the room empty and darkened. She had an excitement in her belly, conjured up from the depths of her soul as she heard the great Doctor Ellis Grey tell her that she was smart, that she was going to make a good doctor. Ellis Grey was not only standing feet away from her, but she, herself was able to help in diagnosing her grandson's ailment.

She wondered if she would be able to have a part in his treatment, his recovery. However, at this moment, she could think of nothing more than to find Richard so that she could tell him that her hunch had been correct, that her memory had not failed her. She needed to tell him that Greyson was going to be alright, because that is what she believed. She needed to make sure he was alright, that her thoughts on his brother's illness had not frightened him half to death. She wanted to clarify some things that she was sure that he had misinterpreted through her actions, as impulsive as she sometimes found herself being. She wanted him to know that he seemed to awaken something deep in her soul, and she didn't understand what it was, or how he did it, but it happened.

She found herself looking up and down the hallway, having absolutely no clue where to look for him, when suddenly she heard the shrill sound of her cell phone in her pocket. Half expecting it to be her father, asking where she is, she answered it with a loud huff. "Hello?" She said as she waited for a moment for the reply. There was a long pause, and the sound of soft breathing on the other end. "Hello?" She said as she pulled the phone from her ear, and looked at the number, she noticed that it was unfamiliar and sighed, thinking she should try one more time. "I'm going to hang up now." She said into the line as she moved her thumb toward the hang up button, listening for another second.

"Harper?" Richie's voice was weak and small as it floated into her ear. She could literally feel the fear through the phone line.

"Richard?" She said, a slight gasp falling from her lips as she listened for his reply.

"I need…" He sucked in his breath as he tried to hold back the sob in his throat. "I need someone to talk to." He said as his held breath released into the line. "I need to talk to someone…" He said as his breath sucked in again.

"Richard, where are you?" She asked as she pushed her back against the wall, she pressed the phone into her ear as she listened, the fear and sadness in his voice was becoming overwhelming for her. "Richard?"

"Stairs." He said with a swallow. "Downstairs. I'm downstairs." He said as he heard her breath quickening slightly.

"Where downstairs?" She asked, the sound of her pursuit was obvious as he listened on the line, hearing the stairwell door open with a loud clunking sound, and the sound of her pounding feet.

"Two floors." He said as he sighed, and just as he said it, he looked up as the door opened, and she stood there the phone to her ear, staring down the hallway at the young man sitting on the abandoned gurney in the virtually empty hallway. She pulled the phone from her ear and slid it down her cheek, as she folded the receiver into her hand, her eyes not leaving his as he pulled the phone in his ear down, closing it into his hand, dropping it into his lap.

He sat cross legged on the gurney, his hands now moving to the side as he shifted himself forward to let his legs hang from the bed, she approached him fiercely, her arms moving out as she reached him, grabbing him tightly, gathering him in her arms, as she hugged him tightly, her head resting on his shoulder as he instinctively moved his arms to her back, encircling her body in his as he began to sob. "Oh…" She coddled as she hugged him tightly, not knowing exactly what to do, but she understood his pain. She understood his confusion and heartbreak. She understood why he was breaking right now.

"What did they find out?" He asked as he suddenly pushed against her arms lightly, feeling her reluctantly pull back and look into his eyes. "What did they find out, Harper?" He asked as he sniffled as he watched her eyes. She gave him a hopeful look, her eyes brightening up as soon as she was able to look deeply into his.

"They found out all of the things that you already know." She replied. "They just have to do the definitive tests."

"The rings? They were there?"

"The Kayser-Fleisher rings were there." She nodded.

"And his liver is…?"

"Destroyed." She swallowed hard.

"What about his brain? What about his…"

"That's not something we know anything about just yet. The copper is poisoning him and when he has proper treatment it could get better." She whispered. "He could get better…"

"But he could get worse?"

"His brain has been through a lot of trauma, and there is surely to be some damage, Richard." She whispered. "If they take care of it now and treat him for the disease the Wilson's isn't going to make things worse."

"It's the fact that he hadn't been treated."

"The damage has already been done." She nodded. "Your family is here." She swallowed. "Someone came in to say that everyone was here. Who is everyone?" She asked.

"Oh God…" He said as he tipped his head forward. "Oh God, I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't! I can't do this."

"Richard? What can't you do?" She asked as she crouched down a little, trying to see his eyes. "Richard?"

"This! I can't do this!" He exclaimed as he pulled the three folders from beside him and shoved them at her. "I can't do this!" He said as she took the folders from his hand and moved to the side. She slipped up onto the gurney beside him and started to look through the labs, the folders.

The first one she opened was Derek's labs. She scrolled down the information in the folder with one hand holding the folder, the other reaching out for Richard's hand. He offered it to her reluctantly, and kept his head down, unable to watch her reaction, he listened to her making small noises as she ran her finger down the lab results, folding the folder back up, she slipped it to the bottom and started to look through Ellis' chart. She shook her head and sighed as she swallowed hard, her eyes passing to Richie, who had his head down, shaking it as he cried. She closed that folder and opened the third one, looking through the file, she saw the bottom had been stamped with a large red 'MATCH' stamp at the bottom, her eyes lit up and she looked at him. "Richard! This is wonderful!" She exclaimed, feeling the energy and excitement shoot from her toes, warming her body as she grinned brightly. "This is wonderful, Richard!" She exclaimed as she leapt from the gurney. She turned sharply and watched as he continued to hide his face from her. "Richard?"

"This is not wonderful." He said angrily as he looked into her face. "This is not wonderful." He sighed.

"What do you mean? You're a match! you can save your brother's life!"

"You don't understand." He sighed as he looked back down into his lap. "You don't understand."

"What don't I understand, Richard?" She asked as she stepped forward and touched his leg. "You are a match, your brother needs a liver."

"Yes." He said as he started to pull himself off the gurney. "That's the easy part." He said as he started to gather the files together. "The easy part is lying on a gurney, getting drugged up and cut open so they can take a part of my body and give it to my little brother." He said as he looked into her. "That's the easy part."

"What's the hard part, Richard?" She asked, swallowing hard, knowing that telling her was almost as hard as actually doing it.

"The hard part…" He swallowed. "The hard part is telling my parents that I'm going to have to do it." He whispered. "They were counting on my father, on my grandmother." He whispered. "My mother and father don't even know that I was tested for this. They don't even know if I'm a carrier for this stupid disease. They don't even know that I did this."

"Why do you have to tell them?" She whispered. "Why do you have the lab files?"

"Because my grandmother is trying to teach me a goddamned lesson about growing up." Richie whispered. "My mother and father are like… inseparable, you know? They've been through everything imaginable together. They've been through the birth of their three children, happy times, birthdays, holiday accidents and scares. My grandmother being at death's door, they almost divorced at one point." Richie shrugged. "They have struggled through Greyson's depression, his attempted…his depression." He sighed as he raised his eyes to look into hers. "They have been through everything, Harper. Everything, but death." He whispered. "My parents have never experienced death together of anyone close to them. I'm not convinced that they're prepared for it. I am not convinced that my mother could come back from knowing that not only one of her sons is being put at risk, but two?"

"Richard…" She whispered as she reached for his hand, thoroughly surprised when he didn't pull his back from her. "What you can do for your brother is astounding." She said delicately, trying not to frighten or freak him out. "What you can do for your brother is scary, it is frightening." She shrugged. "But at the same time, it's heroic. It's selfless. I've seen your labs, the tests. You're strong, you're young, and you're going to be up and about in no time at all." She said with a hopeful smile. "You can do this, Richard, and you have to stop worrying about your parents. I bet they're stronger than you're giving them credit for."

"I don't know." He whispered back, his eyes dropping to their hands.

"Richard…" She swallowed as he slowly lifted his eyes to hers. "You can do this." She said as she carefully ran her thumb over his hand involuntarily. She could feel him pull her hand into his a little more. "I believe you can do this."

"Who? I mean. How? You don't even know me, Harper." Richard said as he started to pull his hand, feeling her hand grip his tighter, he shook his head. "Why are you doing this to me? Why are you doing this? You're the girl that caused this, you're not my family, you're not my girlfriend. Stop trying. Just stop." Richie stammered as he pulled his hand hard from hers and took a step back. "I'm sorry." He said as he looked into her eyes, seeing the hurt that he was causing, he turned his face from hers, unable to look at her. "I'm sorry… but… I'm sorry that I called you." He said as he turned around. "I'm sorry that you were thrown into this, and I'm sorry I called you, and I'm sorry that…"

"Are you really sorry?" She asked as she grabbed his shirt suddenly, making his head jerk to the side as his eyes clashed with hers, the anger in her stare was evident, and it was shooting daggers right into his soul. "Are you really, really sorry, Richard? Well, I think you've been sorry enough, alright? This pity party has been great, alright? We had the punch, we danced a little around the subject, but let's get down to the real dirt beneath our fingernails here, okay? Stop pushing me away, Richard."

"I don't owe you anything!" He exclaimed.

"Who brought you to the hospital, smartass? Who patched your brother up? Who made sure he was stable and alive and not freezing to death when he got here? And if you say that I was the one that caused it, I swear to GOD I will ram my fist into that big fat rectangular head of yours! You don't owe me… no… you're right you don't owe me. But your brother does, and if your nasty ass body has the liver that is going to save his life, then you're going to give it to him. You are going to swallow your fucking pride, you're going to wipe those goddamned crocodile tears off your stupid…" Suddenly her tirade was interrupted by an assault upon her mouth. His lips crashed into hers as his hands moved to the side of her face. Her hands moved to his chest, and for a split second she thought of pushing her hands against him, pushing him away from her, but before she could get her bearings, his tongue slipped into her mouth just slightly, sending shots of warmth through her body. Instead of pushing him away, she gripped his shirt and pulled him in tighter.

She felt and heard him breathe deeply from his nose, filling his lungs with oxygen as he continued to explore her mouth, his hands cradling her delicately as her soft, tender moans sent shivers through her body. "Oh God…" She mumbled against his mouth as her arms lifted around his neck, pulling herself up as her head tilted, deepening the kiss any farther, if it were possible. He suckled her tongue slightly, sending her into a soft, sweet, tender tizzy as she moaned against his lips, eventually needing air, she reluctantly pulled away and was left standing against him, their noses virtually touching, both of their eyes filled with a lustful fire.

"What were you saying?" He whispered, his lips curling to a playful smirk as she breathed heavily, licking her lips as he licked his.

"I…" She swallowed as she tried to push the clouds from her mind. "I brought you something." She whispered, her arms still around him as she nodded toward his bag in the corner that she had dropped when she entered the room.

* * *

Derek walked down the hallway, Mark by his side as he talked. Derek's eyes were focused on only what was in front of him, not the sound of Mark's voice as he talked of his mother's worry, not the inflection or fear in his voice as he asked questions that remained unanswered. His focus was only on getting to his family, getting to his daughter.

"Daddy!" Mariellis' voice was filled with hope as her father came walking around the corner. She ran to him and he bent slightly to let her wrap her arms around his neck. "Daddy, why did Uncle Mark bring us here? Where's Richie and Grey?" She asked as she felt Derek hug her a little tighter. "Daddy?" She asked as she felt him bury his face in her neck just a little as he released her carefully to the ground, she could see that his eyes were red with tears. "Daddy, are you crying?"

"Derek?" What's going on?" Marion's voice interrupted his daughter's worries as he grasped her hand.

"What did Mark tell you guys?" He asked as he looked around at the rest of the family as they looked on. "You didn't have to bring everyone down here."

"It's Christmas Derek, we're your family, and we want to show you support. Mark said it was very serious."

"It is very serious." Derek cleared his throat. "It's very, very serious." He said as he felt his daughter tugging at his arm.

"Daddy, tell me what's going on! Where is Richie? Is Richie alright? Where's Grey? Did he hurt himself again, Daddy?" She asked as she watched her father's eyes move to hers instantly.

"I'll bring you to see your mommy in a minute. We can talk to you about it in a minute. Just hang on, alright, sweetheart?"

"Derek." Marion said as she looked down at her granddaughter. "You can tell all of us."

"Greyson is sick." Derek said as he looked to his sister's faces as they all watched Derek's normally stoic face, his strong eyes, failing at words, he felt his daughter tugging at his arm. "Greyson is sick, and we know what's wrong and he's going to need a liver transplant."

"A liver transplant?" Marion gasped.

"Derek, where is Meredith?" Nancy asked as she stood up.

"She's with Greyson." Derek said as he held his hand out, in a calming manner. "Grey is stable right now and we've started him on some medications to keep him stable, but we don't know how extensive the damage is."

"What about Richie?" Joann asked as she watched her brother, her eyes flashing to her own son who was watching in alarm as he held his daughter in his arms.

"Richie is alright, he's… he's around in the hospital, he didn't sustain any injuries in the car accident."

"Car accident?" Cristina finally spoke up. "Derek, there are a lot of things that you're not telling us. A lot of details that just…"

"They'll get worked out, Cris." Mark said softly.

"Don't take his side! I need to check on Meredith." She said stubbornly as she started to walk past Derek.

"Cristina, stop." Mark said as he grabbed his wife's arm as she pulled at him.

"I need to check on her. I need to…" She said angrily as she tried to pull.

"Hey…" Richie's voice suddenly interrupted everyone's tirade as everyone's eyes were brought to the corner of the room, where Richard stood with his arms crossed over his chest. "He's doing all he can here, cut him some slack, will you?" Richie said as he waved his hands for a moment and glanced over to his father.

"Richie!" Mariellis exclaimed as she ran toward her brother, feeling him lift her from the ground as he hugged her tightly. "You're alive!"

"I'm alive, I'm alive." He said as he set his little sister to the ground after their hug, taking her hand. "Everyone is alive, and everyone is alright, okay? What we need now, is a little bit of organization." Richie said as he shrugged. "We appreciate your support, and Merry Christmas to everyone, but we don't need to be clogging up the hospital." He said with a nervous chuckle. "Dad is going to take Mari to go see Mom and Grey and I'll stay and answer your questions, and then we'll figure out who is going to stay, and who is going to go ice skating and otherwise enjoy their Christmas day. Alright?" Richie said as everyone watched him, nodding. "Dad?" He said, nodding as Derek held his hand out for Mari. She turned and tugged at Richie's hand, he wrapped his arm around her and she kissed his cheek.

"Thanks for not being dead." She whispered as he gave her a nudge.

"How about you not say stuff like that?" Richie whispered as she hugged him again and ran toward Derek, grabbing his hand.

Derek grasped the little girl's hand tightly as he gave his mother a hug, and gave a thankful nod to Richie, as he turned and walked down the hallway.

* * *

Harper stood by and watched it all, holding the bag she had brought to Richie, and the files for the lab tests. He had one more thing to do before he faced his parents, and that was to take care of his family. The longer she stood there and watched him hug each and every one of his family members as he talked to them, the more respect she felt for him, the more warmth she felt in her heart, and the more she couldn't bear telling him that she had to go home soon to be with her own family.

Richie suddenly felt like a dam had burst as he was suddenly drowning in family members asking questions, demanding answers, poking at him, looking at his scrapes. The other people in the waiting room were looking a bit anxious at the large group of people and Richie just waved his hands and spoke a little louder. "Okay, okay…" He said as he waved his hands. "Just settle down here." He said as he sighed. "There are some answers that everyone wants and I'll do my best to tell you what's going on." He said as he glanced to Harper, who was watching. She shrugged slightly and he flashed her a smile. "Okay, okay, come on sit down, you're making me nervous." He said as his grandmother refused to sit down, he took her hand and led her to the rest of the family as they sat down.

"Richard, are you sure you're alright?" She asked as she took his hand. He smiled and shook his head.

"I'm getting there." Richie said as he kissed his grandmother's cheek. "Come on over here. I just want to talk to everyone." He said as he stood in front of his family who had stretched out through the large waiting room, sitting on chairs as they waited. His grandmother refused to sit down as she just held his hand tightly and watched him. "Alright, here is the deal…" Richie said as he sighed. "Greyson has been sick for a while as you all know, and this is all a culmination of that." He said as he sighed. "He has… they're pretty sure… the doctors in the room concur." He said as he nodded toward Harper. "What is called Wilson's disease."

"Excess copper." Nancy said out loud as Richie smiled.

"That's right." He said as he turned his head toward Harper. "They're all doctors." He shrugged as she nodded and smiled, getting a strange look from several family members. "Okay, so the deal is, his liver is damaged, he needs a transplant."

"Do any of us need to be tested, Richard?" Marion whispered. "Do you know if…"

"No." Richie said softly. "No one needs to be tested, he has a donor, a match, and um… but I think that just to be on the safe side, the doctors are going to want to test family members. It's a simple blood test, but Wilson's is hereditary so this is kind of a wake up call." He said as he sighed. "But there was a car accident last night and he broke his arm. I'm okay, and we're all going to be alright, okay? Just don't worry, okay? Dad and Mom are going to be alright and I'm going to be alright. Grey is going to be alright, okay?" He whispered as he felt himself becoming slightly panicked as he felt that he was rambling. "Just…" He sighed.

"It's alright, dear…" Marion whispered as she pulled her grandson into her arms. "You did fine. You did fine, sweetheart." She held him as he wrapped his arms around his grandmother.

"I'm scared." He whispered into his grandmother's ear as his voice whimpered a bit.

"I know you are, sweetheart, it's normal, but you're doing great. You're not alone, baby." She whispered as Richie hugged her tightly.

"I wish that were true, Granny." He whispered as he wiped his tears on her shoulder and swallowed hard as he looked up at everyone. "So, you guys can all disband, go about your Christmas day. We'll be here, and we'll make sure you all know what's going on." Richie nodded as everyone started moving around, asking questions and talking about the goings on as some people prepared to leave, while others like Cristina and Mark prepared to stay. Richie felt like he was suddenly on the outside of the conversation, on the outside of the situation and he felt himself getting tugged away from everything.

At first, he thought it was only figuratively, but it took him a second to realize that he was being tugged, by a very persistent Harper. "Richard… Richard…" She whispered as he turned around and looked her in the eyes. "Richard, I have to go." She said softly as she watched the emotion in his eyes drop completely out of them.

"I understand." He said, nodding his head, his eyes moving down as she tilted her head.

"No. I don't… I don't want to go, Richard, but I promised my father that I'd have Christmas dinner with them. My aunt dropped me off this morning, and they've been trying to get me on the phone for the past hour." She said as she shrugged.

"Go." He nodded. "Go home for Christmas." He said as he tried to give her a smile, though it looked more like a grimace. He nodded his head. "Go before your dad sends out a search party looking for you. It's Christmas, you should be with your family." He said as he tilted his head, watching her watch his eyes. "Why would you want to spend Christmas here? You saved my brother and you did a hell of a job getting my head out of my ass." He said with a slight smile as he felt his cheeks burning slightly. "Thank you." He said, shrugging slightly as he tried to figure out what to do next. He could feel his heart beating faster as she looked into his eyes, and he wasn't thinking clearly as he put his hand out to shake hers.

She paused as she looked down at his hand, her eyes then lifting to his. "Seriously?" She asked, her voice was soft and a bit insulted as she felt her own cheeks burning. "Richard?"

"Thank you, Harper." He said softly as he felt many of his family member's eyes on him as he continued to talk to the stranger in the corner. "I mean…um… what more do you want?"

He watched as her face turned a deeper shade of red, her ears as well as she stared into his eyes. He watched her jaw clench. "Goodbye, Richard." She said as she stared at his hand for a second more, turned and walked away from him angrily.

He paused for a second as she left the waiting room, and suddenly felt his stomach twisting. "Wait!" He called as he ran out the door after Harper, watching her stomp down the hallway angrily. "Harper, wait a second!" He said as she continued to walk away from him. "Please?" He said as he slowed his pursuit. "Harper, please." He said as she turned around and stared angrily into his eyes.

"What do you want now?"

"Are you bipolar or something?" He asked as he jogged to catch up with her.

"That's how you expect to keep me here to talk to you? By insulting my psyche." She asked as she started to turn around.

"Harper, stop…" He said as he touched her shoulder, sending her spinning around, she came face to face with him, their noses practically touching. "I want you to come back." He said as he took a sharp intake of breath. "When you can…" He whispered. "If you want to…" He whispered.

"You want me to come back?" She stated, her eyes burning into his for a moment as he nodded.

"Please?" he asked.

"You want me to come back here?" she said, nodding toward the floor, her eyes lifting again. "Why?" She asked as she shook her head.

"You know why." He replied.

"And I want you to say it." She replied as she gave him a challenging look.

"I can't say it." He whispered.

"Why not?" She asked defensively. "You can give your organs away like you're handing out candy, but you can't tell me why you want me to come back?"

"It sounds stupid." He whispered.

"I bet it doesn't." She replied. "Try me." She said as she stepped into him a little more, her voice was low and husky as she narrowed her eyes and gave him a tender smirk. "Try me, Richard."

"I…" He swallowed hard as he felt her body pushing up against his. He could feel his body reacting to her. He could feel her breath on his skin. "I…"

"Do you like me?" She whispered as she gave him a soft, sweet smile that made his heart flutter. He smiled back at her as he swallowed again. "Then say it." She said, her lower lip slipping into her mouth as she smiled at him.

"I like you." He whispered.

"I like you." She replied, closing her eyes for a moment, she let her lips tenderly touch his, lingering for only a second as she took a step back. "I have to go." She said as she gave him a shy smile.

"You're coming back?" He asked hopefully as she raised her eyebrows.

"You'll have to see." She said as she gave him a wink. "See if I like you that much." She said as she took a step back. "Goodbye, Richard."

"Bye, Harper." He said softly. "Drive carefully."

"Good luck." She said, nodding toward the room with his family, as he turned around to see his grandmother standing nervously in the doorway, waiting for Richard. He swallowed hard and took a deep breath.

"Crap." He whispered to himself as he turned around to say one more thing to Harper, only to find that she had already disappeared.


	11. What Would We Do Without Him?

Derek walked down the hallway, his daughter's hand placed delicately within it as he watched her watch him, the entire time. "Daddy, GG and I had a surprise for you for Christmas." She said as she watched the worry in his face. "It was a really neat surprise."

"I bet it was, coming from you." Derek said as he gave her a soft smile, watching as she smirked at him.

"And GG." She corrected.

"Well, that… that's where you get me confused." He said with a teasing tone. "You say you have this really neat gift, and then you go throw your GG into the mix." He said with a laugh.

"Oh, you'll love it, Daddy! You'll love it a lot." She said as they neared the room. "So can we go right in and see Grey?" She asked.

"Hang on." He said as they approached the room, the door opened as Meredith poked her head out.

"Mommy!" She exclaimed as she released her father's hand and ran toward Meredith. She tackled her hard as she wrapped her arms around her, Meredith taking the hit in stride as she hugged her daughter. "What happened, Mommy? What happened?" She asked as Derek approached them quickly, Meredith's eyes rising to his as she gave him a concerned expression.

"It's alright." She whispered as she hugged her daughter, kissing her head for a moment as they stood outside the room. She stared into her husband's eyes again as his lips moved slightly as he tried to find the words to say to her, his mind failing him as he thought of nothing to say to her.

"I want to see Grey." She said as she looked toward the room. "Can I go see Grey now?"

"Hang on… hang on, baby." Meredith said as she took her daughter's hand and stepped toward Derek. She stepped into him, and his arm wrapped around her as she rested her head on his chest. He kissed her head as he hugged her tightly. He could feel her trying to suck the strength from his body to talk to her daughter about this, to be able to convey to her the worry in her heart for Greyson, and prepare her for what she was going to see on the other side of the door.

"Mom... I'm not a kid..." She said as she crossed her arms over her chest as she huffed. "I can handle it... what's wrong with Grey? I want to see him." She said as Meredith continued to hug Derek, his eyes gazing down on his daughter's stubborn expression.

"Hey, despite what your GG tells you, you are still a kid." He said as he reached down and ruffled her hair. "You're always going to be a kid. My kid. So, cut it out, and be patient." he said as she scowled at him, with a hint of a smile at the corner of her lips. He gave her a tilt of his head and her smile turned genuine as she turned away from her father's view and leaned against Meredith as she waited. Derek pushed his nose into Meredith's hair as he breathed in slowly, kissing the top of her head again as he felt her eyes lift to his face, and he looked into her eyes. "I love you." He whispered.

"I love you." She swallowed.

"You let me take care of this." he said softly as he watched her nod her head. He felt her slide to his side, her arms still wrapped around him as he let his hand touch his daughter's head as she turned around and stood straight as she looked up at her father. "First, kid, Merry Christmas."

"Yeah. Real Merry, Dad. Explain, please."

"Greyson is sick." He said with a shrug. "There's not much more to tell you. You've seen people in the hospital before. He's looking a little yellow, that's from his liver."

"Is he acting all crazy, still?" She asked as she watched Meredith turn her head slightly. "Sorry." She sighed. "I mean. Is he talking or whatever." She shrugged.

"He is sleeping right now, but you can ask him how he's feeling when he wakes up." Derek nodded.

"Where's GG?" Mariellis sighed as she looked toward the room.

"She's in with Grey." Derek nodded.

"Can we go in now?" She asked as she reached for the door handle as she looked up at Derek, and to her mother.

"Go on in." Derek nodded. "But I want you to be quiet, and no smart comments."

"Okay, I'll just act dumb." She rolled her eyes as she turned and pushed the door open as she walked inside.

"I swear…" Derek sighed, as he looked down to see that Meredith had a slightly humored look on her face, even though her eyes were sad. "I know what you're going to say." Derek said. "And she's nothing like me." He said as he pushed the door to allow Meredith to walk in front of him.

"It's like looking in a mirror." Meredith whispered as she passed him and walked into the room, as Derek followed her inside.

* * *

Richie stood for a moment, looking at his grandmother watching him from outside the waiting room. He took a slow, deep breath and took a step toward her. She watched her grandson's eyes, the fear that he was hiding behind the brave look on his face was one to both be proud of, and be worried about as he approached her slowly.

"Richard." Marion said as she watched him straighten slightly, his eyes exploring her face for some kind of clue as to how he was supposed to handle this. "There's more, isn't there?" She asked as she watched his eyes. "I can see it in your face, Richard."

"Just, let me get my bag, Granny." He said as he stepped up to her, her eyes challenging him for a moment as he paused. "My… um… my bag." He said as he nodded toward the room and felt her eyes following him as he turned around the corner. He grabbed his bag off the floor and was instantly face to face with Cristina.

"What else is going on, Rich?" She asked as she looked into his eyes. "There has to be more."

"See, people keep saying that, and I don't understand why you all assume there's more. There's nothing more." He said, his voice was high and revealing as he swallowed and looked Cristina in the eyes. "There's more." He said, into her cold stare as he bit his lip. "But I have to talk to them first." He said as Cristina nodded. "Are you going to wait here?" He asked as she nodded. He glanced to Mikala, who was sitting quietly next to Mark, looking incredibly bored. "I think that Mari is going to need Mik through this." He said softly. "And Mom is going to need you."

"Tell her we're waiting to hear back. We'll wait down here until we hear something more." Cristina said as she grabbed Richie quickly and gave him a brief hug. "Thanks for telling me the truth."

"You're going to hear it eventually." Richie said with a soft smile as he sighed. "I'll be back in a little while. I'm going to bring Granny down to see Grey."

"Alright." Cristina said as she released him from the hug. "Good luck telling them." She said as she gave him a knowing smile, as he chuckled slightly and took a step back.

"Thanks." He nodded and turned toward the door. "I'm going to need it." He said as he tossed his bag over his shoulder, and walked out into the hallway to his grandmother. She turned her head toward him, and he could see the worry in her eyes as she took a slow, deep breath. "Are you ready?" He asked as she nodded her head softly and took his arm, walking with him several steps down the hallway as she suddenly stopped, tugging at his arm as he stopped as well. "Are you alright, Granny?" He whispered, looking down at her thoughtful eyes as she looked up into his after a moment.

"Who was that young lady that you were talking to in the hallway?" She asked as she watched his eyes soften a bit before a slight smirk came to his lips. "She seemed to really like you." She whispered.

"Doesn't everyone like me, Granny?" He asked as she watched his grandmother give him a stern, knowing look. "Her name is Harper Sullivan." Richie said as he watched his grandmother's eyes. "She is a friend." He nodded. "She's the girl that helped Greyson. The one that helped us from the car." Richie said as Marion nodded.

"So you're going to ask her out?"

"Granny!" Richie exclaimed with a laugh as he turned and faced his grandmother. "Greyson is upstairs with a bum liver, and you're talking to me about asking a girl out?" He asked with a laugh, feeling his cheeks burning as he shook his head, watching his grandmother smile slightly, a sparkle in her eye as she took a slow, deep breath.

"Richard. Life is too short to be caught up on one thing. If you find something you want, you need to go for it." She replied as she took his arm and began to walk down the hallway, pulling him along. "Are you coming with me, or not?" She asked as her grandson shook his head and laughed nervously.

"I can't believe you." He said as he started to walk with her toward the elevator.

"Are you going to answer me?" She asked as she listened to his laugh. "I can tell by the way your face turns red that you like her." Marion continued as she walked. "She is very pretty, and she seems smart… studious. Reminds me a lot of your mother."

"Okay, okay." He said as he stopped in the hallway as they approached the elevator. "Granny, I get that you're nervous, and I know you love me… but don't compare the girls I'm interested in, to my mom, that's not cool." He shook his head as he pushed the button for the elevator.

"I think your mom is cool." She shrugged as she watched Richie shaking his head. "So are you going to ask her out?" She asked as Richie laughed as the elevator door opened and he took her arm and they walked inside.

"Let's talk about Greyson." Richie said as he raised his eyebrows.

"There will be enough talk about Greyson." She said as she nodded her head. "I want to know about this girl."

"She's a third year med student, and she's bossy, and she's beautiful and she's… I don't know, amazing." Richie shrugged his shoulders.

"See, that's exactly how your father described your mother." Marion said with a smirk as Richie rolled his eyes and took her arm as the elevator door opened. "Embrace it, Richard." She said with a smile, as he shook his head and walked with her out of the elevator, and lead her quietly down toward his brother's room.

Richard stepped into the room with his grandmother, everyone's eyes lifting at their entrance as Marion looked around at them, and her eyes fell on her grandson, sleeping in the bed. His eyes were closed as he rested peacefully, and though his skin was a sickly yellow, she couldn't help but remark how peaceful he looked, how handsome he was, and how much he had grown.

Derek watched his mother at his son's bedside, her mannerisms were strange to him as he watched her act as if he were awake and well, and nothing at all was wrong with him. He thought for a moment that perhaps his mother was in shock, her initial reaction when she saw her grandson so sickly, but he quickly realized that she was not acting. She was not acting at all, she was truly happy to have the family there as she turned to watch Richard standing in the doorway.

"Richard, come here and talk with us beside Greyson. Come talk to your brother." She said softly, her voice was inviting, though he found her invitation to be odd.

"Granny, he's sleeping." Richard replied as he remained by the door, his eyes on his sickly brother as he moved slightly in the bed.

"You see that, he's waking up. He's going to want to talk." Marion said as Ellis watched her from across the bed, and Meredith and Derek exchanged a look.

"Why is he so yellow again, GG?" Mariellis asked for the third time as she refused to touch her brother's hand, her eyes moving to her other brother as he remained by the door. "What's wrong, Richie, you chicken? You're the one that hurt him. You're the one that broke his arm." She said in an accusatory tone as she felt her father's hand on her shoulder. She looked up and met his eyes, she watched his disapproving look as he shook his head and she looked back to Richard. "Sorry, Richie." She mumbled. "Mom, can I go now?" She asked as she turned her head to Meredith, whose eyes never left her youngest son, and her grip never loosened on her husband.

"He should be transferred." Ellis interrupted their thoughts as she watched Meredith's eyes lift to hers and she tried to read her daughter as she glanced up at Derek, his eyes a bit more telling as he tilted his head. "This hospital is not equipped for a transplant. It's too small, and there isn't…"

"There aren't any doctors that you can boss around." Derek interrupted as Ellis glared at him.

"I want the best care for him, obviously." Ellis snorted back at him as he closed his eyes, looking for a moment of quiet as he took a slow, deep breath. "Boston has the best surgical program in the east, and I want to…"

"I want him home too." Meredith interrupted as she looked up at Derek. "Derek, I want him home."

"We'll bring him home." Derek nodded as she looked to Ellis.

"Very well, I'll make the arrangements for him to be transported to Boston immediately. We can prepare for the transplant to occur, and we'll continue to treat him for Wilson's as best as we can. We'll have Mariellis tested as soon as we get back to town, and…"

"Wait." Mariellis said as she took a step to the side. "Why do I have to be tested? Is he catchy or something?" She asked as she covered her mouth and nose with her hand.

"He's not contagious, sweetheart." Ellis said as she watched Meredith grip Derek tightly, she knew she had to choose her words carefully. "But this disease that Grey has is something that is attached to your chromosomes. You learned about that stuff in school, didn't you? The stuff that makes you who you are?"

"All that stuff? I might be sick too? My liver could be sick too?" She asked as she looked up at her parents and back to Ellis, and to Marion. "I don't understand. What about Richie? is Richie sick? Does Richie have it? Am I going to need a new liver too?"

"There's no need to panic." Ellis said softly as she chuckled a little. "You are fine. It's a simple blood test."

"Stupid Greyson." Mariellis mumbled as she felt Derek squeeze her shoulder again. "Sorry." She mumbled.

"That bring us to our next question." Marion said with a sigh. "The transplant. Is he on the donor list?"

"No." Ellis said shortly as a silence fell in the room.

"Ellis?" Derek said, his voice was stern and concerned, his eyes staring into hers as she clenched her jaw. She stared at Derek as if she expected him to say something, and he stared at her as he waited for an explanation.

"Mom, he needs to be on a list!" Meredith exclaimed as she gripped her son's hand. "Look at him! Did you see his stats? His blood pressure? He needs this, Mom. You said you were going to take care of it! You said you were going to pull some strings. You and Derek! You railroaded me into not being tested, and now you're telling me that you didn't even put your grandson on the transplant list? Do you even CARE?" She exclaimed as her fingers trembled. "Do you even care?" She exclaimed as she turned sharply and began to cry into Derek's chest.

Derek looked into Ellis' eyes and glared across at her, it was clear to him that she knew something, and she wasn't speaking up, and he opened his mouth to call her on it, when Richie stepped forward.

"Hey." Richie said as everyone looked up at him. Meredith leaned her head against Derek's chest and turned her face toward her oldest son as he stood anxiously a couple of steps into the room, his hands trembling. "Yelling isn't going to get us anywhere." He said as he swallowed hard and watched as Meredith raised her head from Derek's chest and watched her son carefully. He looked scared, and nervous, his body trembling as he sighed. "I… I… just…"

"Richard?" Marion whispered as she watched him stammer, she could see that what he wanted to say was important, and when he turned to look into her eyes, she could see he was petrified.

"I brought Christmas gifts." He said as his sister's eyes lit up, and it brought a slight smirk to his face as he watched the confusion on the looks of everyone else in the room. He glanced to his brother, who was still sleeping, and he tried to continue his denial of Greyson's condition, because he knew by the time he left that room, the reality would be much too clear for him to pretend that it didn't exist.

"Christmas gifts?" Derek whispered. "Richie, we…"

"No." Richie shook his head. "It's a perfect time for Christmas gifts." He said as he pulled his bag from his shoulder. He turned and dropped it on the tray table on wheels that was beside him, and he rolled it closer to the bed. He pretended that his parents weren't staring at him, and he watched his sister move closer to him, nudging her way beside him as she watched his bag carefully.

"What do you have, Richie?" She asked as she smiled up at her brother, relieved that he was able to find some way to lighten up the tension she could feel was weighing on her shoulders. She watched her brother's face as he gave her a half smile.

"I got you this." He said, handing his sister a small box. She smiled at him and began to open the wrapping, her grin becoming wider when she opened the box.

"Oh Richie! It's so pretty!" She exclaimed as she pulled the gold chain from the box, a heart charm dangling from it, that made her set the box down, and grab her brother in a hug. "It's so pretty! I love it!" She exclaimed as Richie smiled proudly.

"Richard, this really isn't the time for…" Derek said as he watched Richie ignore him and pull out another box. He handed it to his father.

"This is for you." He said as Derek shook his head and took the box. "Go on, open it up." He said as he nodded his head.

Derek wanted to decline the gift for now, knowing that Meredith was so upset, he shook his head. "Richard?"

"Just open it, Dad." He said as he sighed, watching his sister admire her gift as she grinned up at Richie. Derek took the box and opened it, carefully tearing the wrapper from the gift, he glanced to Richie as he opened the box, watching as Meredith watched him carefully for his reaction. She watched him pull out a pocket watch, silver and shiny as Richie smiled. "I know you don't like to wear your watch at work." He said as he shrugged.

"Thank you, Richie." Derek said as he nodded his head, watching his son for any clue as to why he had suddenly decided to do this for everyone, he could see that he was trembling pretty hard, his eyes flashing to Ellis as he looked back at his bag.

"GG, this is for you." He said as he handed Ellis a small box. "And Granny…" He said, his voice trembling slightly as he swallowed hard. He watched as each of his grandmothers opened their gifts, pulling the gold plated Christmas ornaments from their boxes and hanging them from their fingertips as they both compared the inscription on them. He watched them admire their gifts as they both thanked Richie. Ellis gave him a knowing look, though she knew that Derek was watching their exchange of glances very carefully as Richie sighed and glanced back to his parents.

He raised his eyes to his mother and closed them for a moment as he bit his lower lip slightly. He took a slow, deep breath and released it. "Mom." He said as he watched her brow furrow slightly as she moved from Derek's embrace, closer to her son. She watched him as he pulled three folders from within the bag, his eyes cast down upon them as he stared at them for a moment.

"Richie?" She whispered.

"I… um…" He swallowed as he looked up into his mother's eyes as he swallowed again, his hands trembling, his voice uneven. "Mom… I um… I had originally intended… I had originally intended on um… dressing as Santa for Christmas this year." He said as he tugged on the wooly fake beard from within the bag. He dropped it on the folders as he looked up at her. He watched as her eyes widened, a bit of water beginning to form within them. "I um… I had borrowed the Santa suit and Grey and I were going to surprise you." He said softly. "It was actually Grey's idea." He said as he nodded, noticing that his brother's eyes were open.

"Don't give… me credit." Greyson mumbled as he grunted in pain. "It was your… idea." He whispered as he looked toward his mother, whose eyes were on his. The whites of his eyes were yellowed, and he looked even more sickly awake than he did when he was sleeping. "It was him, not… me." Greyson whispered.

"Well, whoever it was…" Richie said as he watched the corner of his brother's lip move up slightly as he tried to smile. "This is your Christmas gift, Mom." He said as he handed her the three folders. "This is your gift, and Greyson's gift." He said as Meredith took the folders from his hands and looked him in the eyes, her own eyes not looking at the folders, afraid of what she would find within them.

"What is this?" She whispered as she swallowed hard, her eyes burning into her son's as she felt the folders in her hand as her hand trembled. "Richard Michael Shepherd." She shook her head.

"It's not something that I'm backing down from." He whispered. "You have spent your life trying to save stranger's lives." He whispered. "You spend every day, loving us each unconditionally, and you taught us that human life is sacred, that family is the most important, and that sacrifice is always rewarded." He whispered.

"Richard, no." She shook her head as she felt her lip trembling.

"Rich?" Greyson whispered.

"Richard?" Marion said softly.

"Open the folder, Mom." He said as he swallowed hard. "Please, open the folder."

"Derek?" She whispered as she felt Derek reach around from behind her and hold her hands on the folders. "I…"

"Mom, please." He said as he felt his stomach knotting, his heart beating out of his chest, his mouth was dry and his hands were sweating. He thought for a moment that he was having a panic attack as he felt his breathing coming out in short breaths, his body trembling as he watched her stare him in the eyes. "Please open the folders, Mom."

Derek opened the first folder, his own, a hard swallow going down his throat as he breathed a puff of air and kissed Meredith's temple, opening the second folder, Ellis'.

"I need to." He whispered.

"Richard." Meredith whimpered, seeing her son's name across the label of the folder. "Richie, you can't." She said as she watched Derek open the third folder slowly, their eyes starting at the top as together, they scanned down the paperwork, and just as their eyes hit the stamp at the bottom, they heard their oldest son whisper.

"There's nothing you can do to stop me." He whispered, as everyone's eyes were on the folder, and Richie looked up at his brother, as he watched a lone tear roll down Greyson's face as the room was veiled in a calm, peaceful silence, as everyone's eyes moved to Richie.

Everyone stood silently for several minutes, staring at Richie as he stood his ground. His eyes passed from his mother to his father, his sister, his brother, his grandma Shepherd, and eventually his gaze ended up on Ellis, where his stare became ever much more intense. She stared back at him, her gaze stern and full of pride as she thought to say something, but was immediately interrupted by Meredith.

"Richard, I would like to talk to you outside." She said as she flipped the folder closed, shoved them at Derek and took a step forward, her eyes filled with determination, stern to the degree of her mother's stare at him, but also filled with love.

"I'm serious, Mom. I'm not backing down." He said as she grabbed his arm.

"We are going to talk, outside." She said as she yanked his arm hard, pulling him along with her as he cringed in pain.

"Ow… mom… that hurt!" He exclaimed as she pulled the door handle and pulled him into the hallway, pushing him in front of her as she let him go, his body twisting around in a circle to face her as she reached out and pushed on his chest.

"What do you think you're doing?" She asked, pushing him slightly, watching her son's reaction as she treated him not like her son, but actually a little more like she would have treated his father in this situation. "Richard, what are you trying to pull here?"

"Trying to pull? I don't know what you're talking about. I am giving my liver to Greyson. I've filled out the paperwork. I've already taken care of it."

"You've already taken care of it? You've already taken care of it?" She exclaimed as she pushed him again.

"Stop pushing me!"

"Stop making me angry!" She exclaimed as Richie stepped forward and took his mother's shoulders in his hands, he pushed his face so that he could look directly into her eyes and he held her there for a second as she stopped fighting. "Richie?" She whimpered as her lip stuck out and she felt his hands gently rubbing her shoulders as he continued to stare into her eyes.

"Mom." He said softly. "You need sleep, you need to calm down. We all need sleep." He whispered. "You need to let me do this."

"But you're my baby. You're both my babies… my babies, Richie. My babies." She whimpered as she let the tears roll down his cheeks as he released her shoulders and pulled her into his arms in a tight hug, he felt her arms encircle him as she began to sob.

"I know." Richie whispered. "I know this is hard. I know it's hard to hear." He whispered as he held her tightly, feeling her tears wetting his shoulder as she continued to cry. "I know this is hard, Mom. I know this is."

"I am supposed to protect you. I'm supposed to keep this from happening!" She screeched as he held her, the eyes of several doctors and nurses were on them, as Meredith pushed him into a wall as she hugged him fiercely, his arms tightly wrapped around her as he kissed his mother's head and whispered to her.

"It's going to be alright, Mom. It's going to get better. Grey is going to be better." Richie whispered.

"I can't do this!" she exclaimed as Richie looked up to see the door to the room open and Derek look out, Richie gave him a desperate look as he watched Ellis' hand from inside pull him back into the room. "I can't do this, Richard!" She exclaimed as she pulled out of his arms and stood two feet from him, her hand raising to point at his face. "I cannot do this, Richard! If your goddamned father had just let me be tested! I should have divorced him when I had the chance!" She screamed.

"Don't you say that!" Richie exclaimed as he grabbed his mother's hand. "Don't you dare say that!" Richie exclaimed. "Yes you can, do this, and you're going to do this. Because you have to do this!" He said as his voice squeaked. He was trying to keep his voice down, and he pulled his mother close to him as he stared into her eyes with a determined glare. "I was the one that told GG not to let you be tested, Mom. It was me. It wasn't Dad, it wasn't GG's decision." He said as he watched her stare into his eyes. "Dad is not the bad guy in all of this. Sure, he kept from you the fact that we were in the hospital. It wasn't his fault. It wasn't his fault, because I didn't talk to him! I didn't tell him what was going on! He didn't know until he got here! So stop blaming everything on him! It's MY fault! Okay? It's MY decision and you can even ask GG. I demanded that you not be tested, and I'm a match, okay? I am a match, and I am going to be the one that's giving my liver to my brother. You can do this, Mom. Because you're NOT doing it." He said as he watched her wide eyed expression. "I am doing it, and that's the only way that you'd get through this." He breathed heavily as he watched her stare at him. "Do you understand?" he whispered. "I'm strong, and I'm capable, and I'm a match." He whispered.

Meredith swallowed as she stared at her son, her eyes had started out full of anger and determination, and he had watched her resolve wither away to nothing. She was broken, hurting, and so unbelievably sad. Her eyes were pale and full of tears as she clenched her jaw one more time before she closed her eyes.

Richie could see her teetering slightly in her stance, and before he could ask if she was alright, she was stumbling backwards. "Mom? Mom, are you alright?" he asked as he watched her take another step backwards as he reached forward to grab her. "Dad!" Richie exclaimed as he felt her faltering as she stepped back against the wall and opened her eyes, staring into Richie's eyes as she slid down the wall to the floor, her eyes never leaving his as she trembled. Derek was by her side in a second, his body pushed against hers as he crouched against her and watched her eyes flash up to him.

"I have her, Rich." Derek said softly as he looked up at his son as Richie stared down at her in surprise. "It's alright, Richie. I have her, she's alright." he whispered as he held her tenderly in his arms, as Richie watched his mother melt into his father's embrace, her head turning into his arm as she wrapped her arms around him and began to cry.

"Dad… I didn't… I didn't…"

"I know, Richie." Derek said, his voice was deep and stern, his eyes meeting his son's. "Just go check on your sister, please? Take her down to Cristina and Mark. We need to get Greyson ready to bring him to Boston."

"Alright." Richie whispered. "I love you, Mom." He whispered, as he listened to his mother's sobbing for another moment, before he turned around and walked into his brother's room.

* * *

Richie walked back into the room, finding his grandmothers standing over Greyson's bed talking to one another and to Greyson as Mariellis sat staring at the floor as she swung her feet. "Kid, we're going back down to the waiting room." He said as Mari looked up at her brother and then glanced to his grandmothers.

"Where are mom and dad?"

"They're out in the hallway. They just thought you'd feel more comfortable with Mik, Mark and Cris."

"Alright!" She exclaimed as she stood up and glanced to Greyson. "Hey, you don't care if I go down to the waiting room, do you?" She asked her brother as he shook his head. "You look kind of gross and sick."

"Thanks." Greyson said as he watched his sister grab his brother's arm. "Rich?" Greyson said as Richie turned to his brother's calling, their eyes meeting.

"We'll talk about it, Grey." He said as Greyson nodded his head, and Richie watched him for a moment. "You just listen to the doctors, okay? You're going to be alright."

"I'm scared." He whimpered as he watched Richie nod his head and bite his lower lip, their eyes were locked. Greyson stared at his brother as if he were the only person in the room, and Richie returned his stare in full force.

"I know, Grey." Richie said softly as he shrugged. "I am too." He whispered as he gave his brother a slight smile as his sister pulled his arm. "But you're going to be fine." He said as he glanced to his grandmothers as they watched the exchange. "You have some really extraordinary cheer leaders rooting for you." He said as Greyson smiled a slight smile at his brother as he allowed his sister to pull him out of the room and into the hallway as he glanced back one more time and straightened himself as he watched his sister stop.

Meredith was still sobbing into Derek on the floor, her body was trembling against his as she gripped him tightly. Mariellis stood, staring at her mother falling apart as Richie turned to see a look of near panic on Derek's face. "Richie, take her down to…"

"Daddy?" She whispered as she took a step forward. "Is she okay?" Mariellis asked as Richie grabbed her hand.

"Come on, Mari." Richie said as he pulled her slightly.

"No! I want to know if Mommy is okay. Daddy, is she okay?" She asked as she pulled against her brother. "Daddy!"

"She's alright. She's okay." Derek called to his daughter as he watched her continue to watch him hold Meredith tightly to him as Richie walked with her down the hallway, her eyes holding a desperate worry that was breaking his heart. "I promise!" He called as she turned and looked up at her brother, as she grabbed hold of his arm and turned the corner with him. Derek sat on the floor as he held his wife, her body was trembling so hard as she sobbed. "Meri." he whispered.

"I'm sorry, Derek." Meredith sobbed as she held him so tightly. "I'm so sorry I blamed you. I'm so sorry."

"It's alright." He whispered. "It's okay, baby." Derek said softly as he rocked her gently. "I knew that you'd find out soon enough. There is no sense forcing the issue. I love you so much." He whispered as she tried to control her tears.

"I love you. I love you so much." She sobbed as she held him. "We should have known, Derek." She sobbed. "We should have known."

"There was no way to know, baby. This isn't our fault." he whispered.

"How can you say that?" She asked as she pushed away from him suddenly, her eyes staring into his. "It is genetic. We DID do this to him!"

"But we didn't know we were carriers, Meredith, all we can do now is take care of him, protect him and have Richie and Mari tested. The new liver will be a new start for him, Meri, a new start for him." He said as he watched her eyes as they filled with a sad, lonely admiration, her heart was broken, and he knew that, and like Greyson's liver, he knew that all he could do now was work with what he had, and try his best to repair what was already there. "We're going to get them to Boston, Meri, get them to Boston, and we'll be home and we'll be able to do this."

"But Richie…Derek…" She whispered. "What if… what if something happens to Richie?"

"Nothing is going to happen to Richie." Derek said as he ran his fingers through her hair, watching her eyes carefully, he tilted his head. "Richie is strong. Richie is young, and strong, and…"

"And this is breaking him too, Derek." She whispered. "He's just not telling you." She said as her lip stuck out in a pout.

"Richie is young, he's strong and he is going to do this, Meredith." He whispered. "We have to trust him, he's our hope."

"But he's also my baby." Meredith said as she took a slow deep breath.

"He is our baby." Derek said as he leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "They're both our babies, and I promise you, they are both going to be fine." He whispered, as he felt her body relax in his arms, her crying slowing to a tender silence, as he just held his arms around his wife, and held her with all of his strength.

Derek and Meredith walked back into their son's room together, their hands were clasped tightly together as Derek glanced to Ellis. "Why are you still in here?" he asked rather abruptly, his wife's grip tightening on his hand. "I mean… I thought… you were getting him ready to go to Boston." He said softly as he glanced to Meredith in apology.

"And what makes you think that I haven't done it already, Doctor Shepherd?" She said as she crossed her arms over her chest and approached him.

"I didn't assume anything, Doctor Grey." He said as he cleared his throat. "You know what they say about people who assume…"

"Hey." Greyson's voice interrupted their standoff as he rolled his head to look at his parents and his grandmother. "There's a kid dying over here could you keep it down?" He mumbled as Meredith looked to Derek and then back to Greyson.

"Greyson, don't you talk like that." Meredith said as she approached the bed. "No one is going to do any dying." She said, her voice was wavering slightly, but she was doing very well considering her breakdown in the hallway.

"Mom, I'm going to die." He said as he coughed. "I'm going to die… so get used to it." He said, his voice was slightly angry as he watched the anxiety in his mother's face become more intense. His mind was swirling, his thoughts and his lips didn't match as he snapped at his mother again. "Richie's going to die too!" he exclaimed.

"Greyson, that's enough." Derek said as he took a step forward and took Meredith's arm.

"Shut up, Dad." Greyson spat as he sneered at Derek. "You can't protect her from the reality, Dad. You can't protect her from everything."

"Greyson, you say one more word, and we're giving you another dose of sedative." He said as he pulled Meredith to the side slightly, he touched her cheek as he looked into her eyes. "It's the morphine and the copper levels in his brain." He whispered.

"That's not Greyson." She whispered.

"That's not Greyson." Derek nodded. "Right, that's just the sickness talking, Meredith, okay? No one is going to die." He whispered.

"Hey! I'm over here! Don't you want to talk to me before I…" Greyson stopped himself as he suddenly got a confused look on his face, his eyes burned into his father's for the longest time before he turned his head and stared at his grandmother. "Granny? Granny? Am I going to be alright?" He whispered as he started to cry, tears rolling down his cheeks as he reached for her with his good arm. "Granny, tell me I'm not going to die, Granny."

"Oh, sweetheart." Marion said as she took his hand and moved closer to him, she leaned down toward him and kissed his forehead as she smoothed his hair back with her other hand. "You're going to be okay, baby, don't cry."

"I told Richie that I was going to kill him, Granny!" He sobbed. "I told him that I was going to kill him, and now he has to go have surgery because of me? What if he dies, Granny? What if he does die? I said I was going to kill him, and I could! Granny, don't let Richie give me his liver…don't… please… if you love me, you won't let him do this." Greyson sobbed as he watched his father take a step toward him. "No!" he exclaimed as he snapped at his father, his tear filled eyes were suddenly filled with anger. "Don't touch me!" He exclaimed.

"Grey, I am checking on your…"

"My piss bag is fine." He growled angrily as he watched Derek and Ellis exchange a look. "And don't look at her for sympathy! GG is on my side! She's on my side!" He exclaimed as he yelled angrily, not noticing Ellis as she did what Derek had wanted done with one of the monitors. "I don't want you or mom touching me!" he said angrily as his head snapped to his grandmother. "This is your fault! This is your fault!"

"That is enough." Derek said in a stern voice as he stepped forward. "You will stop this, right now! I don't care if your chemical balance is off, or if you're perfectly fine, you're not going to speak to us like that. Now sit back on that bed, and don't you say another word." He said angrily as he felt Meredith's hand on his, pulling him back from his anger, he knew the words she was speaking with the grip of his hands. He knew that she was telling her that it was alright, that she understood.

She was okay.

"Greyson, this is not the time, or the place to talk about fault." Granny interrupted, her voice much calmer than Derek's, but she spoke the words that Derek was trying to convey with his anger. "Your mother and father love you very much."

"Then why did they do this to me? They're doctors! How did they not know! I have been sick for years! YEARS!" He exclaimed as he glared toward his parents. "Don't you love me?" he whimpered as his eyes stared into theirs, his voice was nothing but a mere whimper as he held his hand out for his mother. "Mommy, don't you love me?" He whispered.

"Of course I love you!" Meredith exclaimed suddenly, as she rushed forward and took her son's hand, her other arm reaching out as she grabbed him in a forceful hug, his tears rolling down his sickly face as they dropped into her sweater. She began to cry as well as she held her son, thankful that his rage had passed for at least a moment, so that she could hold him once again.

* * *

Richie walked down the hallway with his sister. He looked down at her as she stared straight ahead, her face was determined as they entered the elevator. He turned as they reached the elevator and he stopped, looking her in the eyes, he waited for her to react. Her eyes hit his and she stared at him, her expression was less one of worry, and more one of boredom. "Are you alright?" He asked as she sighed.

"I'm fine." She said as she sighed again.

"Are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine." She shrugged.

"Mariellis, that doesn't work." Richie replied.

"What doesn't work?" She asked, giving her brother a confused expression, her lip sliding into her mouth as she chewed on it for a moment.

"Saying your fine, when you're obviously not fine." He replied. "I do that, Grey does that, mom does that, GG does it. It's kind of a family tradition." He said as he sighed. "But you're not fine, Kid. It's alright to be not fine." He said as she chewed her lip a little more. He watched her swallow hard as she glanced to the elevator.

"I'm not fine, okay?" She whispered as tears came to her eyes.

"I know." He whispered.

"What if I'm sick too?" She whispered.

"You're not sick." Richie replied. "If you have it, you have it, but right now you're healthy. It's something you will just have to deal with, you know? Change your diet, and have a test now and then, but you're not sick, okay? There's nothing to be afraid of." He whispered.

"Are Mom and Dad going to be alright?" She whispered.

"Mom and Dad will be alright." Richie replied. "I promise. Grey and I are going to come out of this, better than ever."

"Why are you doing this, Richie? You don't need a surgery, but you're going to get cut open and get sick for Greyson?"

"I'm doing this because I'm the big brother." He said softly. "I'm doing it, because it's a gift for me to live and because he didn't do anything to deserve this, he deserves to live too. He's Greyson, kid, what would we do without him?"

"I don't even want to think about that." She whispered as Richie nodded.

"Me neither." He said softly. "It's not an option." He said as he reached his hand out for her. He watched as she took her hand, and gave it a small squeeze as he felt her squeeze his back. "Let's get you down to Cris and Mik and let them know we're going back to Boston." He said softly. "Then we'll take it from there." He said as Mariellis nodded her head, as the elevator doors opened, and they stepped inside.


	12. I'm Okay You okay?

Richie dropped his sister off with Cristina and Mark, giving them a quick update on Greyson's condition, he told them that they should just give his parents a few more minutes, and then they would most likely be alright for visitors. He didn't know the schedule for getting to Boston, but he knew that his grandmother had ways of getting a helicopter to just about any hospital. He walked briskly down the hallway, unsure if he wanted to go back to his brother's room, and he glanced to a clock in the hallway. It was already two in the afternoon, and he could hear his stomach growling loudly. He thought for a moment about his parents and he sighed, knowing that they too were probably really hungry, but he knew they wouldn't have much of an appetite. For a split second, he thought it would be almost rude for him to eat without them, his stomach twisting within his body, reminding him that if he didn't eat soon, he would get dizzy or sick. He paused in the hallway, turning to let himself rest against the wall, he stared across the hallway blankly at the posters on the wall. The phone in his pocket began to ring, and he didn't pause for a moment, only remembering it was his father's phone when he brought it to his ear.

"Hello?" He said cautiously, fairly sure that whoever was calling was looking for his father.

"Richard?" The voice on the other line sounded nervous, but recognizable.

"Harper?" Richie said, he breathed a sigh of relief as he relished in her voice. "How did you know this number?" He asked curiously, unsure of what else to ask, he listened to her pause.

"Richard, you called me from this phone earlier, remember?"

"Oh." He whispered.

"Are you alright?" She said softly as she listened for his reply.

"I'm… I'm okay." He nodded, as if he had to ask himself first, the pause was awkward and needed.

"Are you sure? How did it go?"

"It went, um. It went well. They didn't have a choice." He said as he slid his back down the wall, sitting in the empty hallway, he glanced back and forth to see if anyone was coming.

"I was calling to check on you to see how it went and let you know that I'm going to come down to the…"

"No." he said shortly, telling himself that he needed to calm down he stammered for a moment. "No. I mean… I mean, you don't have to." He said as she listened for a moment.

"You don't want me to come back?" She asked as he shook his head.

"No, no." He said, realizing what he was saying, he quickly corrected himself. "No, I don't mean I don't want you to… to come down, I mean… What I mean is that…I mean… We're going home." He said softly. "We're going back to Boston. My grandmother is preparing to transport Greyson, and we're going to be gone before the end of the day." He sighed as he listened to her pause.

"Do you want me to come down there?" She asked as she spoke to him softly.

"You just got home, Harper. Eat, spend Christmas with your family." Richie said, as Harper paused for a moment.

"We ate." She said with a smile. "My sister wants to know how you were able to deliver all of the toys in one night." Harper's voice suddenly changed to one of amusement.

"Huh?" Richie asked as he paused, smiling slightly as she pulled his attention away from the fear and sadness of his brother's situation and repositioned it somewhere that was not so stressful, not sad, not thought provoking at all. "Oh!" he laughed. "She thinks that I'm…"

"Santa Claus." Harper nodded. "She thinks you're Santa Claus."

"Did you tell her that I'm not?" Richie asked as he listened to her giggle on the other side of the line.

"No!" She laughed. "You had the suit. She's convinced."

Richie laughed nervously over the line as Harper became quieter. "Have you had anything to eat?" She asked as she practically read his mind. He paused as he tried to decide whether he would tell her the truth or not. "Richard, have you eaten?"

"No." He whispered.

"Then it's decided." She said as she paused for just a split second. "I'm coming down there, and I'm bringing Dad's lasagna leftovers."

"Harper, you don't have…" He started to protest as she hung up the phone, leaving Richie sitting on the floor, with an amused grin, and a grumbling stomach, though the thought of Harper returning made some of the pain disappear.

Richie considered going back to his brother's room, facing his parents and his grandmothers. He knew Cristina would be there soon, supporting his mother and berating his father, trying to get things back to normal. He walked down the hallway and rode the elevator to the lobby, he figured that if anyone needed him, he'd be paged over the loudspeaker. He stepped slowly to one of the ugly and uncomfortable orange waiting room chairs, and leaned down and rested his arms on his legs for a moment, putting his head in his lap, as he sighed.

* * *

 _"MOM! Greyson was in my room again!" Richie exclaimed as he pounded down the hallway angrily. "Mom!" He exclaimed again, standing at the top of the stairs. "Mom!" Richie called as he stomped down the stairs. "Mom!" He shouted as he walked into the kitchen, finding Meredith standing beside the sink, washing vegetables. "Mom, I was calling you…" He said as he stomped over to her, she still didn't turn around. "Mom?" He said as he touched her arm._

 _Meredith turned to face Richie, her eyebrows raised as she watched the concerned look on her ten year old son's face. "Oh, you were talking to me?" She asked as Richie gave her a confused look._

 _"You are Mom, aren't you?" He asked, his nervousness turned humored as he watched the smirk playing on his mother's face. "I was calling you." He said as he sighed, leaning against the sink as he looked up at her._

 _"Oh." Meredith nodded. "Well, I changed my name." She said as Richie laughed. "Don't laugh. I'm serious. Now you can't come looking for me for silly things." Meredith replied._

 _"Mom, this is serious." Richie said as he shook his head. "Greyson went into my room, and he took all of my…"_

 _"I'm not Mom." She shrugged. "You're going to have to take it up with someone else." She said as she turned and placed the vegetables on the counter._

 _"Dad?"_

 _"He changed his name too." Meredith replied._

 _"GG?" He asked as he chuckled, leaning over to see his mother's eyes, as she glanced to him._

 _"She changed her name to two other letters in the alphabet." Meredith said with a slight giggle._

 _"What about me, did you change my name?" He asked as he laughed._

 _"I did change your name, your name is now squiggle."_

 _"Squiggle?" He laughed. "That's a silly name!"_

 _"It is, because you're a silly boy." Meredith nodded as she handed him a piece of carrot. He took it from her and bit it, smiling as he munched away. "Now what was it that you needed, Squiggle?" Meredith asked as she glanced to her son again._

 _"I don't remember." He shrugged as he munched away on his carrot stick._

 _"Alright." She said as she smiled. "Why don't you do me a favor, set the table for dinner. Daddy will be home with Grey and Mari in a little bit."_

 _"Okay." He said with a smile as he took turned around to get ready to set the table._

* * *

Richie sighed into his lap, watching a tear fall to the tile floor, splattering recklessly against the pinkish colored tile. He sniffled and continued to stare at the floor as he felt a hand on his back. He didn't have to look up to know who it was. "Rich?" Derek whispered.

"I'm okay." He sniffled as he looked up into his father's eyes. He could see the concern in his eyes, the worry, the sadness.

"Are you sure?" Derek asked as he reached across and wiped the tear on his son's cheek, he smiled slightly as he watched Richie nod his head.

"I'm just thinking." He whispered.

"I know." Derek nodded. "Cristina is in with your mother. I just wanted to find you to make sure you're doing okay."

"Dad?" He swallowed as he looked into his father's eyes. "What is going to happen to Grey? I mean, I read about Wilson's, and it says the brain damage could be permanent. Do you think he's… do you think he'll always be sick?"

"I think…" Derek said softly. "I think that some of the… um… outward things that Greyson does… the hallucinations, the paranoia. I think most of that will go away when his copper levels straighten out." Derek nodded. "As for his liver? I mean, if we don't get that done soon, it can cause other problems and I don't want you to just be giving away your organs." Derek chuckled as Richie shook his head.

"I'd do it, if I had to, Dad."

"You don't 'have' to do anything, Rich." Derek replied. "Your mother and I do appreciate it, and we're proud of your sacrifice."

"It's not a sacrifice, Dad." Richie replied. "My liver will grow back to the way it was, I'm not losing anything, I'm keeping my brother."

"It is a sacrifice, Rich." Derek replied. "You'll have scars, and you'll be sick. There are always complications to worry about and the fear of his body rejecting it. Please be aware of the risks, along with the benefits. I don't want you jumping into this thinking that it is going to be a quick thing. It's going to be long and painful, Richie."

"I know you're not trying to convince me not to do it but why does it sound like you are?" Richie asked.

"Because you're my son. I don't want you getting in over your head, and if you do, or you feel like you are, please make sure you talk to us."

"Thanks, Dad." Richie said with a nod as his eyes moved to the side, as someone entering the building caught his attention. Derek watched his son's eyes light up as his eyes moved away from him, and Derek turned slightly to see Harper walking into the hospital holding a paper bag. Richie looked to his father as he watched the sly smirk on his face. "Wipe that look off your face." Richie said as his cheeks burned in embarrassment.

"Yeah." Derek laughed as he turned around. "Harper?" He called as the young woman turned her head to the sound of her name. Derek watched how her eyes lit up and she smiled as she started to walk toward them.

"Don't you dare say a word." Richie whispered as she approached, and Derek chuckled to himself as she smiled and held the bag out for Richie.

"Here, eat." She said as she smiled at Derek. "Hi, Doctor Shepherd." She said with a kind smile as Derek stood up.

"You brought him something to eat?" He asked as she glanced to Richie and then back to Derek.

"He mentioned that he was hungry, I had leftovers. There's enough there if you'd like some. It's lasagna." Harper said as she smiled.

"Oh… no, It's okay, but thank you." Derek nodded. "I was actually on my way to get Meredith a little something to eat."

"How is Greyson?" Harper asked as Derek exchanged a look with Richie and looked back to Harper.

"He's doing as well as we can expect." Derek nodded. "Thank you for taking care of this one." Derek said as he gave Richie a pat on the shoulder.

"It's no problem at all, Doctor Shepherd." She said with a smile as she sat down beside Richie and watched him peek into the bag.

"Call me Derek." He said with a smile as he took a step toward the elevator. "We'll be up in Greyson's room if you're looking for us. Have you seen my cell phone?"

"I have it." Richie said as he held it up as Derek took a step toward them. "My battery is dead." He said as Richie handed his father the phone.

Derek took the phone and glanced to Harper. "Are you going to be here a while?"

"For as long as I'm needed." She shrugged as she smiled.

"Good." Derek nodded. "Use her phone to call me if you need me." Derek replied.

"Her number is in there, Dad." Richie said, nodding toward his phone as he slid it into his pocket. "If you need us."

"I'll call you if anything comes up." Derek said with a nod.

"Thanks, Dad." Richie said with a smile as Derek gave him a sly grin, as he turned around and left the two of them sitting in the lobby together.

Richie sat silently for a moment, looking into the brown paper bag that Harper had brought for him, he smiled a little as he reached inside. "What is this?" he asked as she smiled at him as he pulled the small cellophane wrapped item from within the bag. She grabbed it from him and held it in her hand.

"That's dessert." She said as she watched him smile at her eyes, his focus moving back to the bag.

"You never asked me if I liked lasagna." He teased as she reached for the bag.

"You never said you didn't." She shrugged as she grabbed the bag from his hands and put the bag of cookies back inside. "Why don't we find someplace quiet so that we can talk and um… so you can eat?" She shrugged as she stood up with the bag and nodded toward the stairwell.

"Someplace quiet?" he asked, raising his eyebrows, watching the blush rise up in her cheeks as her jaw opened slightly as she just grabbed his hand and dragged him along.

"I am not going to dignify that with an answer." She said as she tugged his arm.

"Hey, you said it." He said as they walked together toward the stairwell and slipped inside undetected. "Where are you dragging me to?"

"That place you were hiding out in earlier."

"The storage floor?" He asked. "Here, this way." He said as he slid his arm down and grasped her hand in his as he lead her down the stairs to the floor that he had found earlier. They walked in the doorway, and as soon as the door clicked closed, she tossed the bag onto the abandoned gurney and grabbed his hand tightly as she turned him around. "What are you…?" He asked as she faced him nose to nose.

"I want to go to Boston with you." She said softly, strongly.

"What?"

"Boston." She said as she cleared her throat and looked into his eyes intensely. "I want to go with you, with your family. I want to be there. Can I take you there? Can I stay with you when you have the surgery?"

"Harper… you don't even… you… can't…"

"I don't what? I don't know your family? I don't have any right? I don't even know you? What? What 'don't even', Richard? Why 'can't' I?" She asked as she took a step back, her voice was filled with annoyance, her eyes were blinking rapidly as she seemed to be hiding behind her strength and stubbornness as she eyed him carefully. "What is your freaking problem?" She asked as she reached to smack him, having her arm snatched by his hand, he pulled her close to him. She allowed him to move his other arm around her back as he reached around her and hooked his hands against her back, pulling her against him as he pushed their chests together and looked down into her eyes.

"You have a very, very big mouth." He whispered.

"So?" She whispered, her voice whimpered as she sighed.

"So, be quiet for a second so that I can get a thought out, would you?" He whispered as he felt her relaxing more and more by the second as he held her securely in his arms. He found himself lost in her eyes for a moment, their hearts beating together as he swallowed hard and tried to find his words.

"Are you going to…?"

"Shh…" he whispered as she closed her mouth and gave him a playful scowl. He stared into her eyes until he could feel her completely resting in his arms, her eyes sparkling beautifully as he shook his head slightly. "I was going to say…" He swallowed as he tried to calm his pounding heartbeat. "I was going to say that you don't even have to ask." He said softly whispered. "You can't even begin to know how much it means to me, to hear that you want to be by my side for this."

"Are you trying to save yourself here?" She asked with an incredulous stare, her eyebrow raising as he smiled at her and shook his head.

"No." he chuckled. "I was going to say that I promise."

"Then why do you stammer like a scratched CD?" She asked as she watched him smile slightly.

"I'm going to say it again." He whispered. "You have a big mouth." He said as she smiled slightly at him, her eyes looking into his as she tilted her head. He was about to lower his lips onto hers, when she suddenly turned her head.

"Are you going to eat?" She asked as her body straightened up in her arms and he gave her a playful smile.

"I am." He nodded. "Why, do you want it?"

"No." She whispered as she smiled slyly. "You need to get your strength up." She said as she poked his chest lightly.

"For the surgery. Yeah, I'm going to have to make sure that I'm…"

"No. " She giggled as she pulled out of his arms and reached for the bag. She pulled out the container of lasagna, and turned as he took the container in his hands. She handed him a fork. "You're going to need your strength to keep up with me." She laughed as she turned sharply, and jumped onto the gurney across from him, as he shook his head and laughed, watching her lean back on the gurney as he glanced down at the lasagna, and back up at her as they shared a laugh together.

Richie sat on the gurney across from Harper, watching her for a moment as she lay back and tucked her hands behind her head as she stared at the ceiling. He sat back against the wall and opened the container of lasagna, glancing up at her, he noticed that she was still staring at the ceiling. "Alright." He said as he watched her head turn in his direction, her smile dancing at the corner of her lips as she watched him. "Tell me about yourself." He said as he brought the container to his nose and breathed in the smell of the food, making a slight satisfied noise as he brought it down to his lap.

"It tastes better than it smells, you know." She teased as he shook his head at her.

"I'm savoring." He said as she rolled her eyes and laughed. "Come on, tell me about yourself." He said as he watched her.

"Well, first of all…" She shrugged. "I don't really like talking about myself." She said as she glanced to him.

He raised the fork to his mouth for the first bite, but her answer stopped him. "Just talk." He said as he rolled his eyes.

"I don't like it when people roll their eyes at me." She said as she rolled to her side and let her head rest on her hand as she leaned against it.

"I don't like when people avoid answering questions." Richie said as he let the forkful of food melt into his mouth. "Mmm…" He mumbled as he reached in for another forkful, his eyes now on the food.

"Good, huh?" She asked as Richie nodded his head. "My dad is a police officer…" She shrugged. "My mom is a lawyer." She replied as Richie listened intently while he ate. "They are divorced, obviously… not much detail to go into there… and I'm kind of their go between." She sighed.

"You're the deliverer of the little sister." Richie replied.

"Exactly." She said with a nod. "I'm kind of the one that has to expel all of the rumors from one parent to the other, the peace keeper. I was old enough when the divorce happened, to have seen it coming, and not necessarily be too affected by it."

"I'm sure you're affected by it." Richie said, without looking at her. "Insecurity sets in at an early age… parents fighting all the time creates tension and self esteem problems and issues. You probably have some unresolved deep seeded daddy issues that you won't come to terms with until you…" Richie looked up to see her staring at him with a surprised look on her face. "Snap… one… day, I think that I'm going to shut up now." He said as he looked into the container and poked his fork at the food. He waited for her to continue talking, and when she did, he felt guilty for his little diatribe as he refused to look up at her.

"I take it you're a psych major." She said as Richie nodded his head as he stared into the bowl and continued to eat.

"Sorry about that." He said as he looked up at her with a concerned glance, watching the smirk on her face. "What?" He asked as he watched her shake her head.

"Nothing…" She sighed as she lay back and stared at the ceiling again, her smirk disappeared as she sighed.

"No… no, not nothing… you were going to say something to me…" He said as he moved forward on the gurney so that his legs were hanging off. He placed the container of lasagna on the mattress and looked to her. "Come on, talk to me." He said softly as he watched her head turn, her eyes meeting his.

"I don't like my mother, and I don't like my father. I love my sister with all of my heart, and I want to protect her from both of them. I can't take her from them, yet I can't protect her from the heartache and the hurt that I know that she's going to feel." She said softly. "My parents are both screwed up… my father is in love with his job, and he's a nice man… and he has his faults and flaws, and my sister shouldn't have to be the one to deal with them. My mother is a whore." She shrugged as she turned her eyes from him. "She cheated on my father for as long as I can remember… she has had boyfriend after boyfriend and is always bringing them into my sister's life, and breaking up with them just as she gets warmed up to them. My experience in medical school and boys was the one boyfriend that I had for a year and a half until I found out he was cheating on me with my best friend. Now… similar to your situation with your girlfriend… what is her name?"

"Lisa." Richie whispered as he watched her look at him for a moment as if she were thinking, she turned away and continued staring at the ceiling.

"Right, Lisa… well… this was a little different, but you know… same thing… whatever… so I didn't tell my parents that my friend and I were no longer friends, because she was the daughter of one of my mom's clients. I had this dinner with my mom and her client about a year ago… and they asked how things were going with Bridget, and I kind of blew up and called her daughter a whore, a skank, and a boyfriend stealing wench… kind of made things awkward between my mother and I. We don't really talk much anymore, except when she's telling me instructions to give my dad on how to take care of my sister. As it turns out, My mother isn't going to be around for the next month, you know… the month of which I have off from school before I start my last semester of medical school, so she decided to leave my sister with my father." She sighed.

"So?" Richie whispered.

"So… I would be spending most of my time at my father's house." She swallowed.

"And?"

"And… I trust my father with my sister more than I trust my mother. He has my Aunt Haley around to help with Riley, so… that's why I asked if I could go with you to Boston." She admitted. "I thought… it would be a good opportunity… to um…" She paused as she watched Richie's eyes. "To get to know you better." She shrugged.

"And maybe spend some time in a hospital that you're interested in for your internship?" He asked as he raised his eyebrows.

"Icing on the cake." She replied.

"Maybe… suck up to the chief of surgery a bit… and her son in law, daughter…"

"I was thinking more along the lines of sucking up to the chief of surgery's grandson…" She said as she leaned on her arm again, giving him a sly smile that sent shivers down his spine. "What do you think about that?"

"I don't know how Greyson is going to feel about that." Richie said without hesitation, laughing as her jaw dropped.

"You know I'm talking about you!" She exclaimed as she flopped her back down on the gurney and covered her eyes with her hand as she shook her head and laughed. She giggled as she felt the weight of something to her side, and slowly moved her hand, to peek between two of her fingers, her view of the ceiling was blocked by Richie's smiling face.

"Hey…" He said as she moved her finger to block her view again. "Hey, look at me…" He said as he touched her hand, slipping his thumb beneath her finger, she let him remove her hand from her face slowly as his smile turned serious, though his eyes still sparkled. "Come on…" He said as he watched her give him a playful smile.

"What?" She muttered as she felt him sit beside her on the gurney, leaning over her delicately, his hand still resting on the other side of her as he leaned over her body.

"Why do you want to get to know me?" He asked softly. "I mean… why the interest in me? I was mean to you since we met… and I haven't given you any of the credit that you deserve for getting my brother and me out of our mess." He replied. "I've blamed you and been rude to you… shouted at you, told you to go away… rejected you… but you keep trying harder…" He whispered. "Why?"

"I dunno." She mumbled as she lifted her hand to put it over her face again, he grabbed her hand and put his hand in it, interlacing their fingers as he leaned closer to her. "Richard." She whispered.

"Harper?" He whispered. "Please tell me what you're thinking." He said as he watched her stare up at him for several moments. "I want to know what you're thinking."

"Why do you ask so many questions?" She asked as she closed her eyes, blocking out the brilliant blues that were staring into her soul.

"Because you haven't answered any of them." He replied. "Please talk to me?"

"Fine." She said as she opened her eyes. She wiggled her fingers in his grip, keeping their fingers intertwined as she sighed. "You want to know why I'm sticking around? I'm sticking around because you have been the only person in the past two years to trust me." She replied. "You trusted me out in the snow, you trusted me with your brother, you trusted me to get you to safety." She said as she watched him smile sadly. "You were angry and short with me, but I went home… and all I could think about was you… Your excuses, your anger… the way you told me to leave you because all I wanted was to get ahead, and all I really wanted was to make sure your brother was alright… because it was breaking my heart to see you hurting." She swallowed. "I heard him yelling at you in that room, Richard, everyone heard him, and I knew that you needed someone. I knew that you needed someone, and for some strange reason, I wanted to be that person, because thinking of you holding onto anyone else made me feel so unbelievably jealous." She said with a shy smile. "You had put your trust in me, and I wanted to show you that it was still true." She whispered. "And when I came back… you trusted me to try to make you feel better, you trusted my diagnosis of your brother, and you did all of that without question." She blurted out as tears sprung to her eyes.

"So?" He whispered. "Are you an untrustworthy person?"

"No." She replied. "That's where it gets complicated." She pouted.

"I have a feeling that you're a very complicated person…" He whispered as he swallowed hard.

"You're just trying to be nice." She whispered as he watched her eyes.

"I like you." He whispered, his eyes sparkling as he looked down on her, watching the tear run from her eye, down her cheek.

"You said it…" She said, as a soft smile curled the corner of her mouth, sending sparkles through her eyes that made his heart beat faster.

"I said it." He shrugged. "I…" Richie cleared his throat as he took a deep breath and smiled a sad smile. "I figured that today was a day of me being brave, making decisions, standing up to my grandmother, telling my parents about my gift." He whispered. "You helped me. You saved me and Greyson, and you gave me strength, Harper. I couldn't have done it without you." He swallowed. "Thank you." He said, with tears threatening to fall from his eyes.

"You did it all by yourself, Richie." She whispered, watching his eyes widen slightly as he smiled at her. "What?" She sniffled.

"You didn't call me Richard." He said.

"So? What did I say?"

"You called me Richie." He laughed.

"So?" She giggled. "That's your name, isn't it?"

"Yeah…" He said with a slight laugh as a tear fell from his eye onto her forehead.

"Oh…" She giggled as she reached up to wipe it from her forehead, he leaned forward instead and took her hand in his. He leaned down and kissed her forehead lightly as he wiped the tear from her skin with his lips. His soft tender lips pressed against her forehead as she sniffled slightly. He moved his lips down, kissing her temple tenderly, and another kiss to capture the tear at the corner of her eye. He paused for a moment as he smiled against her, listening to her breath quicken beneath him as he moved his lips to kiss away the tear that was trailing down her face. She moved her head slightly, her lips catching his chin, his cheek, and finally his lips as he shifted, releasing her hand he held in his.

She moved her hand to his cheek, tenderly guiding his lips to hers as she kissed the mixture of both of their tears from his lips, tasting the salty remnants against her tongue as she felt his hand move to her face. "Your lips are so soft." She whispered as her breath caught in her throat, as he watched her lean up slightly to kiss him again, only to be stopped by his finger lifting to her lips, as he touched them with the tip.

"I'm savoring you." He whispered with a smile, as he sat up slowly and smiled down at her, a soft smile on her lips. "Now where is that dessert, you promised me?" He said as he looked toward the bag with a smile, as she giggled and grabbed his arm, pulling him down for another kiss.

She pulled him hard, sending him toppling slightly, losing his balance, he nearly fell on top of her on the gurney. He was able to catch himself on the sides of her body, lifting himself over her as he landed on his side on the other side of her. Her head turned as she rolled onto her side, wrapping her arm beneath his as she gripped his shoulder blade with her hand, and pulled him into her. Tenderly, she let her lips touch his, her eyes closing as she felt his hand running up and down her arm delicately. She opened her eyes to find him looking directly into hers.

"I feel violated." He teased as a shy smile crept to his lips as she felt her cheeks turn crimson. She closed her eyes and swallowed hard as she dipped her head down out of eye contact with him, resting her forehead against his sternum. He leaned into her, resting his nose in her hair as he breathed in slowly, letting his lips rest on her head, he gave her a tender kiss as he ran his hand over her arm. "Your arm is cold…" He whispered. "You have to own another jacket." He whispered as she shook her head into him.

"I don't need a jacket." She shrugged, her face still buried in his shirt as she breathed in his scent, her head turning to rest her ear against his chest, she could hear his quickening heart beat as he pulled her closer into him. "Richie?" She whispered.

"Hm?" He whispered.

"Tell me about you." She whispered.

"I think you know all of the interesting things about me that there is to know." He said as she lifted her eyes to meet his, his crystal blue eyes sparkling with a bit of mischief. She gave him a playful glare and he smiled a little wider. "I'm not going to get away with that, am I?" He asked as she shook her head.

"No way." She giggled, her eyes focused on his as she watched him look up for a moment in thought.

"Um…" He said with a swallow. "I am named after my grandfather… my dad's father… I never met him, but the way my dad talks about him, he sounds like he was an amazing man. My middle name is after my uncle… Michael… who… um…strangely enough… helped my mother when her car slid into a snow bank on Christmas eve one year. He said as he looked down at Harper, who laughed.

"He did not!" She laughed.

"Seriously." He nodded with a smile. "That's how the legend goes." He laughed.

"You are so making that up!" She laughed.

"I am so serious!" Richie laughed. "That's how my parents met." He said as he pulled her closer to him, feeling her body moving as she giggled. "They were married on Christmas eve too." Richie said with a laugh.

"So yesterday was their anniversary?" Harper asked, her eyebrows lifting in curiosity as Richie nodded.

"Twenty years." Richie replied.

"Oh man… and this was your gift, huh? Smashing your car to pieces on Christmas eve in memory of your parent's first meeting?" She laughed, watching Richie's face become serious as his eyes moved from hers. "Richard, I was kidding…" She said as she moved her hand to his chest. "Richard?"

"I prefer when you call me Richie." He said, moving his eyes back to hers as a slight smile could be seen emerging at the corner of his lips.

"Richie, I… I didn't…"

"I know." He said as he swallowed. He shrugged his shoulders and sighed. "It's not your fault that I made a stupid decision." He whispered. "It's not your fault that Greyson is sick… and I'm sorry that I blamed you for the accident." He whispered. "You just… surprised me." He whispered. "I should have been able to react better… I was distracted with Greyson. He wasn't feeling well, and all I could think about was how I thought bringing him home was a bad idea…"

"Your mom seemed pretty upset when she got here." Harper whispered. "When you introduced her to me, she looked so upset."

"Grey has always been a little different from my little sister and I." Richie said softly. "He was always just… a little more vocal… a little more affected by small changes. There was a time that my parents thought that he was autistic… but you know, there were always little things that debunked those theories."

"Now you know what it is… what it was." Harper smiled as Richie's eyes caught hers for a moment.

"Thanks to you." Richie whispered. "I mean could you imagine if we didn't find out? My grandmother and father would have killed one another in that room." He said softly.

"They really were at one another's throat when we went in there." Harper replied.

"They're always challenging one another, arguing… I've grown up with it, I'm used to it. It is actually funny to listen to sometimes." He laughed. "They're so similar that it drives one another crazy… because neither one will admit it. When I was six years old, my grandmother had an aneurysm. She um… she almost died, and my father was there when they removed it. He claims that when she was drugged up right before the surgery that she admitted that he was a better surgeon than she is… he teases her about it constantly. They really are best friends though… they keep one another going. I know that if she had died that day that my father would have been devastated. She has only gotten stronger since then, and you met her… she's not an easy person to talk to." Richie sighed. "My Granny Shepherd would the one people should worry about. If she doesn't like you… then there would be hell to pay." Richie laughed. He watched as Harper's face turned to a serious expression, and heard her swallow. "What?" He whispered as he tilted his head slightly, watching her bite her lower lip.

"Nothing." She said with a nervous smile.

"You're worried about my Granny Shepherd?" Richie asked, a slight laugh in his question as she turned her head to look at the ceiling. Richie lifted his fingertips to touch her chin. With barely any pressure at all, her head turned with his fingers as she came face to face with him again. "The whole trip to see my parents… she asked about you." He said with a smile. "She wanted to know who you were… she kept asking me questions… who you were, if I was going to ask you out… giving me advice. You would have thought that she had planned this whole thing so that I'd meet you." Richie said as Harper's eyes remained on his. She didn't say anything, only listened to his words. He paused for a moment as her lip slipped back into her mouth. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay." She whispered, her voice higher and slightly trembling as she swallowed, his thumb still resting on her chin, his fingertips touching her cheek. "What…" She took a slow deep breath, releasing it as she swallowed. "What did you tell her?" She asked.

"About who you were?" Richie asked.

"Partly." She replied.

"I… told her that you were the person who saved Grey and me." He replied. "I said that you were… a third year medical student… and um… that you were bossy…" He chuckled as he watched her eyes sparkle at his smile. "I said… that you were beautiful…" he whispered, feeling his chest tightening as he watched her gaze intensify. "And um… I said that you were… amazing." He said, his lower lip now slipping into his mouth as he began to bite it nervously.

"What about the other part?" She whispered, a tender smile appearing on her face as her eyes squinted slightly as she smiled, a drop of mischief hiding behind her intense stare.

"Other part?" He whispered.

"Are you going to ask me out?" She said as a fully fledged smile appeared on her face as she waited for him to become nervous at her question. She was surprised when instead of stumbling, or stuttering over his words, he chuckled.

"Do you want me to ask you out?" He asked. "I mean… I thought the kissing was nice, but I'm not sure I was looking for a relationship." He said as he rolled his eyes and laughed as her jaw dropped open.

"Richard!" She exclaimed as he rolled onto his back and started to laugh as she tried to pull away from him. "Let me go… Let me go!" She exclaimed as she laughed and pushed off him, trying to get off the gurney.

"No… no, you're not going anywhere!" He exclaimed as he laughed, she pushed off his side and he yelped in pain. "Ow! Crap!" He exclaimed as she stopped struggling.

"What? What, did I hurt you? Are you alright?" She asked as she watched him grab his side in pain, cringing, his eyes clenched tightly as he gritted his teeth. "Richie, let me see… come on…" She whispered as she tugged at his hands.

"It's nothing." Richie grunted as he took a deep breath. "It's nothing…"

"Nothing doesn't make you react like that…" She said as she watched him hold his side. She tugged at his shirt. "Let me see…" She whispered as she stood beside the gurney, watching him shake his head.

"No… it's fine… I promise, I'm fine." He replied.

"You're not fine… pull your shirt up." She said as he shook his head. "Pull your shirt up or I'll knock you out." She said as he raised his eyebrows. "Try me, Richard. I dare you." She said as he finally lifted his shirt. "Oh my… holy shit… Richard, what happened?" She exclaimed as she leaned in and looked at the bruise on his ribs. It was dark and painful looking. She reached her hand to run her finger over it, when Richie tried to pull his shirt down. "Stop being a baby." She said as she looked at the bruise. "Was this from the accident?" She asked.

"No." Richie said as he breathed a slow breath in, trying to stop the sharp pain. "It's from the first time I almost slammed into the snowbank yesterday. "Greyson had an episode." Richie said softly. "He punched me in the ribs… they're not broken, they would have told me when they did the tests earlier… but… it hurts." He said as he swallowed.

"Oh…" She said softly, sympathetically as she leaned down to take a closer look. "Poor thing…" She whispered as she kissed his bruise tenderly, watching as a wave of goosebumps rose on his skin, she giggled to herself slightly.

"What are you giggling at?" He asked as he tried to forget that she had her lips on his skin, he felt her trailing kisses around the bruise, and he could feel his face burning as she kissed just the right spot on his side, sending his body jerking slightly. "Harper!" He squeaked as he grabbed his shirt and pulled it down, sending her jumping back. "That tickled…" He said with an embarrassed whimper as he pretended to be sad.

"Aww…" She giggled as she sat back on the gurney, her back to him as she stared at the bag on the gurney across from them. She sighed.

"Hey…" Richie said softly as watched her head turn, her eyes catching his as he saw a bit of sadness in her eyes. "Can I ask you a question?" He said as he gave her a wicked smile that sent a grin across her lips.

"No, Richie… I'm not going to hand you the…"

"Will you go out with me, Harper?" He said as her eyebrows rose.

"What?"

"Don't look so surprised…" He said as he smiled, rolling onto his back as he laughed, she stood up and turned. She pulled herself onto the gurney without saying a word, she rested her head on his chest as he took a deep, nervous breath.

"Your heart is beating very quickly." She whispered.

"You changed the subject." He said as he looked down at the top of her head as she continued to listen to his heart.

"It's going faster now…" She whispered as she started to tap her fingers to the rhythm of his heart. "Oh… faster…" She whispered, giggling at how he was squirming slightly under her weight.

"Harper?" He said as he sighed.

"Sure." She whispered against his chest. She lifted her ear from his chest and stared him directly in the eyes. "I'll go out with you, Richard." She said with a smile, as she rested her head on his shoulder and stared into his eyes, as they became lost in the moment.

Harper and Richie remained on the gurney for a while, she tucked her head onto his chest and felt his head move slightly as he nestled his nose into her hair. They didn't speak, for no words needed to be spoken, their eyes closed as they rested peacefully, the trials of the past two days finally getting to them as the phone rang, jarring them from their restful place as Harper sat up and grabbed her phone. She flipped it open and put it to her ear, her body sore, her mind slightly dazed as she had been falling asleep in her comfortable spot beside Richard. "Hello?" She mumbled into the line.

"Harper, is Richie there?" Derek's voice crackled through the phone as Harper looked down at Richie, whose eyes were open as his eyebrows raised.

"Yeah… hang on." She said as she handed him the phone. "Your dad…"

"Good… I thought maybe it was the president… Who else would be calling me on your phone?" Richie asked as he took the phone from her, feeling a light smack on his chest as he chuckled to himself and put the phone to his ear. "Dad?"

"Stop being a smart ass." Derek said into the line as Richie raised his eyebrows. His voice was tense, almost angry, his tone extremely serious.

"Huh?"

"We're leaving…" Derek said shortly. "Your brother just had a seizure, we have to get to Boston now."

"Dad."

"Get upstairs, we're talking about transport."

"Harper is going to take me there."

"Richard, I don't have time for you to be messing around, I need you up here now so that we can go." Derek growled.

"Dad…"

"Richard!" Derek said as he huffed. "Now!" He said as the phone disconnected.

Richie pulled the phone down and looked at Harper. "What's going down, big man?" Harper asked as she watched the anxiety filled face of Richie.

"We have to go."

"We have to go, or you have to go?"

"He wants me upstairs… he didn't say one way or another about you." Richie swallowed as he took a slow, deep breath. "He's pissed."

"Then let's get up there… we don't want him to get any more angry than he already is." She said as she rolled off the gurney, putting her feet to the floor, she held her hand out for Richie. He paused for a second before he took her hand, looking at it, he sighed. "Rich?"

"I'm fine…" He said as he gave her his hand and let her help him up. He stood up and kept his hand in hers. They turned toward the door and started walking as Harper grabbed the paper bag from the gurney. He looked back at her and smiled slightly as he squeezed her hand. "That's another thing you're going to have to learn." He said softly.

"What is that?" Harper asked as they opened the door and stepped through into the stairwell.

"When I say I'm fine…" He said as they walked together up the stairs. "There's a really, really good chance that I'm lying." He said as her eyes met his as they reached the correct floor. He reached for the handle and she pulled back. He turned to face her as she pushed herself into him, looking up at him as he wrapped his other arm around her. She leaned up and closed her eyes as his head lowered and his lips softly touched hers. He breathed in a slow, steady breath and smiled against her mouth as he pulled from her lips and looked directly into her eyes. "I'm much better now." He said with a smile as she grinned brightly at him and gripped his hand tightly.

"Good." She said with a smile as she brought his fingertips to her lips and kissed them delicately, before gripping his hand tightly and walking confidently through the door with him, as they made their way toward Greyson's room.


	13. Boston Bound

Richie grasped Harper's hand tightly as he opened the door to his brother's room. He took a slow deep breath and squeezed her hand slightly, feeling her squeeze his hand right back, he felt the corners of his lips curl up slightly as he stepped inside, thought it instantly disappeared as soon as he stepped into the room.

There was a vibe of chaos in the room as everyone seemed to be talking at once. Derek was arguing with Cristina while Ellis and Meredith argued back and forth. Mariellis was hopping up and down trying to get their attention as Mark and Mikala tried to hold Cristina back from hauling out and punching Derek. Richie couldn't understand a word than anyone was saying, and his eyes flashed to his Granny, who was sitting beside Greyson's bed as he slept, her hand on his forehead as she kissed him tenderly.

Richie and Harper made their way over to the other side of the room along the wall, no one had even noticed they had even entered the room, they stepped closer to Granny. She took Richie's hand and tugged him into a hug as he released Harper's hand for a moment. "Granny?" He whispered. "What's going on?"

"No one can agree on what to do, who is going with who. It's just a big mess." She whispered in his ear as she reached her hand out for Harper. Harper looked into her eyes for a moment and then down to her hand as she beckoned her tenderly. Harper took her hand and allowed her to pull her into a hug as well. Richie turned his head and gave her a grateful smile, as he turned his head and looked at the knowing look on his grandmother's face. "Are you looking for another argument?" He asked as he gave her a smirk, watching the proud smile raise on her face.

The volume in the room was slightly louder as Cristina stomped on Derek's foot and he howled in pain, and Richie turned around sharply and held his hand behind him as he blocked his grandmother and Harper, as if he were trying to guard them from what he was about to do. "Alright!" He exclaimed. "Stop this right now!" He said loudly as everyone's yammering slowed and everyone turned toward Richie. "Thank you." He sighed.

"It's about goddamned time you got here." Derek said angrily.

"Don't snap at me." Richie said as he pointed toward his father, shaking his head. "I have been here for a few minutes. Now everyone else… just… be quiet for a second and just one person tell me what we're going to do?" Richie said as suddenly everyone started talking at the same time. "One person!" Richie exclaimed as everyone became silent and a glance was passed around the room quickly, moving from person to person, like a game of invisible musical chairs, until it stopped on Derek. "Tell me, please." He said as Derek nodded.

"I'm… Greyson… he needs to be…"

"Greyson is going to be flown to Boston." Ellis said as she gave Derek a stern glance, he nodded a grateful nod, for once happy that she had taken the reins on this explanation. "We're just deciding who is going to go with Grey, and who is taking ground transportation."

"Why don't Mark and Cristina take the girls and Granny? Mom and Dad, you can go with GG and Greyson, and then it's settled." He said with a huff, watching as everyone stared at him for a moment.

"How are you getting there?" Meredith asked.

"I'm going with Harper." He said as he cleared his throat. "She's taking me to Boston."

"Who's Harper?" Mariellis asked as she crossed her arms over her chest and watched Richie's eyebrows go up.

"She's my girlfriend." He said as he felt Harper reach forward and touch his hand as he watched his mother's face go white.

"Is that where you have been all afternoon?" Meredith asked angrily as Richie could see the panic in her face.

"Mom." Richie said, his voice was tender and warning, trying to let her know that everything was alright, but at the same time praying that she didn't cause a scene. "We had a phone. Dad called us and told us to get down here, it's alright." He said softly.

"Just in case you hadn't noticed, Richard, your brother is sick!" She exclaimed as Richie felt Harper's hand squeeze his again, as he dropped his eyes.

"Yes." He said softly. He raised his eyes again and looked her directly into the eyes as he reached his other hand for his mother. "Dad?" He said as he turned his head to Derek.

Derek looked up at Richie and he nodded as Meredith took his hand. "Change of plans. Harper and I are taking Mom with us. You and GG take care of getting Greyson home."

"Richard, no." Meredith said as she started to pull her hand from his.

"Yes." Richie said as he put his arm around his mother's shoulder and tugged Harper with him. "I think getting out of this hospital room and away from Greyson is a very good idea, and I think that Dad and GG can take care of him for a couple of hours to get him home." He said as he kissed his mother's cheek.

"Richie, I don't think that it's such a…" Derek began to argue.

"It's a wonderful idea." Harper said as she walked to the other side of Meredith and took her hand gently into her own. "We should get going now, so we don't have to rush."

"Richard…" Meredith whimpered as she pulled at her son, pushing away slightly as he tried to look into her eyes.

He leaned down and pressed his lips close to her ear as he took a slow, deep breath. "You're going to love her." He whispered, as she took her free hand, and wrapped it around her son, hugging him close as she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Meredith?" Derek whispered as he looked to see the way Richie was holding her tightly against him, how calm she seemed to feel against her son, and he realized that all she was thinking about was how she couldn't hold her youngest son, and how it was breaking her heart. He looked up at Harper, who smiled slightly and tilted her head. "You'll take good care of them." He whispered.

"I will." Harper nodded. "I'll get them there safely, I promise." She said with a half smile as Derek nodded, and the decision was made.

* * *

Meredith stayed at Greyson's side until she was all but pulled away physically to prepare him for his airlift to Boston. Derek held her hands as he leaned against the wall, his fingers intertwining with hers as he tilted his head. They were the only two in Greyson's room, as they said their goodbye. "Are you going to be alright?" He whispered.

"I… think…" She shrugged.

"I'm not letting you go until you're absolutely sure." He said as he gave her a slight smile, watching as she gave him a soft smile back.

"Your son has a girlfriend that he's known for twenty four hours." She said as she watched his eyes widen slightly and the smirk on his face widen slightly. "It's not the same…" She said with a slight giggle.

"How long did he know the last girl?" He asked as she pursed her lips slightly.

"Three years?"

"And that didn't work out." He replied. "Have you seen the way he looks at her, Meredith?"

"I just met her, Derek." Meredith whispered.

"So has Richard, but you can tell that their souls have known one another forever." Derek replied.

"You are a hopeless romantic." She whispered as she leaned her head against his chest, feeling his hands move softly against her back as he held her close.

"I'm not a romantic." He whispered as he listened to her giggle against his chest, as he felt her melting into his arms. "You should…"

"I should get going." She said, pre-empting his goodbye as she looked up into his eyes. "If we want to meet you at the hospital."

"Harper is driving, right?" He asked as she raised her eyebrows at him and giggled.

"That was a trick question, right?" She asked as he ran his fingertips through her hair and shook his head at her smile.

"Tell her to drive carefully." Derek said softly as he glanced to Greyson as he slept peacefully. "We'll take care of Grey… you take care of Rich. Make sure they get there safe and sound." Derek said as he kissed her lips tenderly.

"I will… you guys fly carefully… and I love you." She said as she leaned up tenderly and placed a soft kiss on his nose.

"Nose kisses?" He asked as she nodded her head.

"You get the real thing when you get my boy there safely." She said as she tilted her head and watched her eyes carefully.

"You're doing just fine, Meredith." He whispered, his words anything but a question as he watched her nod her head.

"I'm doing just fine." She said softly as she watched him follow her eyes with his. "I love you." She whispered as she took a slow step back from his arms.

"I love you, Meri." Derek whispered as he leaned forward and kissed her nose as she smiled and turned toward their son's bed. She walked to her son's bedside and slowly leaned over, kissing him tenderly as she ran her hand over his skin. Derek watched as she whispered to her son, and he waited patiently for her to say goodbye. He watched her kiss him again, and she looked up at Derek as he tilted his head. "You take good care of him, daddy." She whispered as she walked toward Derek and held her hand out to him.

"I do nothing but the best, Mommy." He whispered, as he kissed her hand tenderly, and with a soft, loving wave and a blown kiss, she was out the door and in search of Richie and Harper.

* * *

 **December 25- 7:00 PM**

Meredith walked up to the elevator just as the doors opened. She smiled slightly at her son as he stepped out. "Are you ready to go?" He asked as he tilted his head, watching his mother nod and step forward. He turned and held his arm out for her, watching her tilt her head.

"What is with this gentlemanly attitude all of a sudden?" She asked with a sly smirk as Richard shook his head.

"What? I'm being a good son…" He said as he smiled softly at her, watching her shake her head. She slipped her arm into his.

"I think it's just for show." She said with raised eyebrows as Richie chuckled and shook his head.

"For who?" He said as he nodded toward the elevator. "It's only you and me." He said as she smiled and led her into the elevator. They turned around once they were inside, and Richie pushed the button for the lobby.

"How long will it take us to get there?" She asked as Richie rested his head on his mother's for a second as they waited.

"Three and a half hours." He said softly as he felt his mother hug his arm tighter. "He's going to be just fine…" Richie replied. "I called Uncle Neil…" Richie said softly. "They're picking up my car and are going to transport it back to Boston."

"Richard…" Meredith nodded.

"What? Did you want me to just leave it out in the mountains?"

"As far as I'm concerned, you're never getting in that car again…" She shook her head and sighed.

"It was a fine car." Richie said as he watched his mother continue to shake her head. He paused for a moment as he practically read her mind. "But I shouldn't have driven it in the snow." He whispered.

"No… no you shouldn't have." She said sternly as their eyes met as the elevator doors opened. "Thank you for saying that…" She whispered.

"Well, you were right." Richie rolled his eyes as she let out a little laugh, and the two of them made their way to the car. "Did you say goodbye to Dad?"

"I did…" Meredith replied as she watched Harper pull the car up to the curb.

"How is he taking everything?" Richie asked as he held his mother's arm as they walked over the sidewalk, watching for icy patches as they made their way toward the curb.

"He… he's alright for now." Meredith replied as her eyes met Richie's again. "But you know that he is always calm until things get down to the wire." She replied. "Then it'll be our turn to worry about him." Meredith whispered as she reached for the car handle for the back seat.

"No…" Richie said as he shook his head. "Front seat for you…" He said as he reached for the door to open it for her.

"I thought that you'd like to sit with…"

"Ladies choice." Richie replied. "And we're not a chauffeur service." He said with a smirk as Meredith giggled.

"You don't mind?"

"I'm holding the door for you, aren't I?" He asked with a laugh as Meredith shook her head. She stepped forward to step in the car, turning to touch her son's cheek as he gave her a tender smile. "We're all going to be alright." He whispered. "I promise."

Meredith smiled at her son, watching him nod toward the car as he held her hand, helping her into the SUV. He watched her buckle her seatbelt, and his eyes flashed over to Harper as she gave him a sly smirk. "What are you smirking at over there, Sullivan?" He said as he gave her a faux suspicious look.

"Richard, be nice and just get in the car." Meredith said as she reached for the door and nearly closed it in his face.

"Yes Ma'am…" Richie said as he saluted his mother through the window, receiving a well deserved scowl as he turned to climb into the back seat.

The beginning of the drive was fairly quiet. There were one or two exchanged words, but for the most part, Meredith stared out the window as Harper drove, and Richie sat in the back watching between his mother and Harper as he tried his hardest to assess the climate in the car. He looked up as Harper's eyes met his in the rearview mirror and he gave her a slight smile as he watched her eyes sparkle back at him.

"Meredith?" Harper said her voice softly as she watched Meredith's eyes move to the young woman driving, a polite smile on her face. "I know that you probably don't want to talk… but I was just…"

"No." Meredith shook her head as she smiled, shifting in the seat to look at Harper more comfortably. "It's fine, we can talk… get my mind of these thoughts that are racing through my head." Meredith said as she tilted her head.

"Don't you dare do what I think you are about to do." Richie said as he leaned forward and caught the wicked look in Harper's eyes as she smiled at him.

"The peanut gallery can keep quiet." Meredith said as she glanced back at her son.

"We have a three hour drive ahead of us." Richie replied.

"All the time we're going to need to talk about some important things." Harper said as Meredith caught the smile on her face and knew exactly what she wanted to know.

"Harper… don't you dare…"

"What? You want her to get to know you better, don't you, Richard?" Meredith asked. "Is that what you want to talk about?" Meredith asked. "You want to know a little bit about the pain in the back seat?"

"I would love to learn more about the pain in the back seat." Harper giggled.

"No… no, no… this is not a good idea, not a good idea at all!" Richie exclaimed as the girls exchanged a glance.

"It was his idea to bring me along." Meredith said to Harper.

"It was." Harper replied. "What did he think we were going to talk about?"

"I am sitting right here! I can hear everything you're saying!" He exclaimed.

"That's nice dear." Meredith replied as she glanced back at Richie with a smirk. "Where should we start?"

"Well… let's start at the beginning." Harper shrugged as she smiled, glancing back to Richie as he pouted in the back seat. "He's cute when he's pouting." Harper said as she laughed, smiling even brighter as Meredith shared in her laughter.

* * *

The car was filled with laughter from Meredith and Harper, and though Richie was at the center of most of the stories that should have embarrassed him enough to crawl under the back seat, he was just happy to hear his mother's laughter. There was no worry in her voice as she spoke, her concentration was purely on the task at hand, and Harper only encouraged her as they drove along. Occasionally, Richie would let out a dissatisfied groan when the story became too personal or too embarrassing for him to handle, and at one point he covered his ears as he listened to Harper's uproarious laugh through his poor attempt to block out the sounds he was so happy to hear.

"And when he was seven… he was convinced…that he could see into the future." Meredith said as she giggled, tossing her head back as she watched Harper glance back at Richie.

"I couldn't see into the future. I said that I could control the future… two very different things!" Richie argued.

"Anyway…" Meredith said as she watched Harper listen carefully. "He told his brother that he was going to get a new bike for his birthday… and instead, Derek had bought Greyson a kite… so when Grey called Richie's bluff, there was this whole new rumor in the air that Richie could actually control the future… and he didn't want Greyson to get a new bike, and that was why it didn't work!" Meredith laughed as Harper continued to giggle as Richie shook his head in the back seat.

"See… see, that's the right story… that's the right story… finally, you're telling one that was true. All of those other ones… all of them are lies…" Richie laughed.

"So the one where you pulled your diaper off and threw it at your father because it was dirty?" Harper giggled as Meredith laughed.

"See… that's not embarrassing for me, that's embarrassing for him… so yes… I'll give you that one!" Richie said with a laugh as he looked to see that they were already entering the city. "Harper… three more exits…" He said as she glanced back at him.

"Seriously?" She asked as she glanced to Meredith.

"Seriously…" Meredith nodded. "Wow… we're almost here already." She said as she started to yawn. She looked out the window and looked up.

"They are probably already there." Richie said as Meredith turned and raised her eyebrows. "You were looking into the sky…" He shrugged. "What was I supposed to think?" He said as she shook her head and turned her attention back to Harper.

"I have to say, I really, really have enjoyed this ride with you two." Meredith said with a smile. "I honestly can't remember the last time that I had so much fun just talking. Things get so busy with work… and I get wrapped up in everything… and it's not everyday someone has an interest in hearing stories from when the kids were little… and I just…" She sniffled a little as she felt herself starting to cry a little. "I just really appreciated the break, Rich… Harper." Meredith said with a sad smile directed toward her son.

"Things will be getting a lot easier in the next few days, Mom." Richie replied. "We'll be making sure of that." Richie said with a half smile as Meredith smiled back at her son, though he could still see the sadness in her eyes.

The car then became quiet, and Richie could feel the tension building up from his mother's silence. Harper exchanged a glance with him that pleaded for him to break the tension, though at this point he had no idea how. They sat in silence as Harper neared the exit, and Richie leaned forward. "Take a left at the bottom of the ramp." He mumbled as Harper nodded her head and leaned her head to the side, resting it on Richie's hand that he had placed on her shoulder.

The directions from then on were in silence, and Harper listened to Richie's hand signals as Meredith suddenly jumped, when the phone that she had been gripping in her hand so tightly began to ring. "Excuse me…" She whispered as she lifted the phone to her ear. "Hello?" She said into the line, a slow smile lifting on her face as she shook her head. "Derek, that's not even funny." She said as Harper noted the shy look on her face. She found it funny that even after all of these years, her husband's voice could send her into an almost schoolgirl tone, and the smile on her lips was sly and happy. "You're there…" She sighed as she sighed. "Any um… any problems?" She asked, listening to his answer as she nodded. "Tell her to behave herself." Meredith said, her voice was fairly stern. "No… tell her that if she doesn't behave herself then she's going to have to deal with me."

"She's talking about my grandmother." Richie whispered to Harper as Harper let out a giggle. "My sister behaves." He said with a laugh as Meredith turned her head and glared at Richie. He sat back and sighed as Meredith continued to talk on the phone.

"Put her on the phone." Meredith said sternly. "Mother." Meredith said in a stubborn voice. "Let him make the decisions on that, don't push him." She said. "No. I don't care if you're the chief of a small African tribe and you've found the cure to liver warts. He's the one in charge of Greyson and if he says…I'm not arguing about it anymore… put Derek back on." She said as she sighed. "It is fine." She said. "We're almost there." She said as she listened, her voice becoming less tense as she sighed tenderly. "No… it was good… it was really good… relaxing… yes… Yes… you were right, yes…" Meredith said, her voice laced with faux irritation as she giggled a little. "Yes, it did hurt to say that…" She said with a giggle as she sighed. "We'll be there very soon." She said softly as she nodded. "I love you too." She said as she flipped the phone closed, the tension growing tenfold as they sat silently.

* * *

Harper followed Richie's directions, and when they finally pulled into the hospital parking lot, Meredith glanced back to Richie, and back to the clock. "Rich…" She said as Richie's eyebrows raised and he tilted his head. "Mari is going to be staying with Cris and Mark and your dad and I are going to be staying at the hospital with Grey. Your surgery wont be for at least a day or two." She said as she continued to stare at her hands. "Um… why don't you take Harper to the house." She said, glancing back at Richie. "Stay there tonight and get some comfortable sleep, and in the morning, you two can come back to the hospital. There's no use in us all crowding Greyson's room, and you've already had your tests. Your dad and I are going to be there." Meredith said softly. "I'll call the house phone if we need you… if anything happens…"

"Are you sure?" Richie asked as he watched Meredith's eyes finally move to meet his.

"Yes…. Yeah… I'm sure, sweetheart… you need your sleep and I don't want to force Harper to stay in the hospital. The spare room is set up, she can stay in there and you can stay in your old room." Meredith said softly.

"Are you sure dad didn't turn my room into an office yet?"

"He wanted to." Meredith said with a little giggle. "But when does your dad get home to do office things anyway?" She said as Richie laughed. "It's just the way you left it."

"Are you sure that you don't mind if we go?"

"I need you to go, Rich… I only have so much strength to worry about all of this, and it's wearing thin." She said as she gave Richie a tender smile. "You be a good boy…" She said softly as she reached her hand back for Richie as he grasped it in his, leaning forward for her to kiss him on the cheek.

"I'll be good." He promised as Meredith turned to Harper. "Harper… It was lovely to meet you and talk with you…" Meredith said with a tender smile.

"It was wonderful to meet you, Meredith." Harper said with a small smile as she reached her arm out to pull Meredith closer, she pulled the older woman into a hug, and was happy when she hugged her back.

"I'll see you two in the morning." Meredith nodded as Richie nodded in return, pulling from Harper's hug.

"We'll be there bright and early." Richie replied. "I love you, Mom…"

"I love you too, Richard." Meredith said with a half smile as she climbed from the car, stepping onto the curb as she watched Richie move to the front seat. She watched as they waved from within the car, and slowly began to drive away, remaining on the curb in front of the hospital, even longer after the tail lights from the car disappeared from view.


	14. Backup

The drive to Meredith and Derek's house was silent, awkward to a degree, and on the cusp of being almost humorous as Richie stared straight ahead nervously, and Harper drove, glancing to Richie now and then, his hands resting in his lap as he sighed with wide eyes and his thumb flicked his forefinger at a steady interval, a nervous tick that Harper had already noticed about Richie. He gave silent directions, his eyes darting around the darkened street, his hand leading the way as they pulled down the suburban street that Richie grew up on, that his parents had lived all of his life.

"So this is where you grew up, huh?" Harper asked as Richie nodded, pointing toward one of the brick homes on the block.

"Yes." He said, stringing out the 's' as he glanced at the driveway before she pulled up to the house. "It's plowed." He nodded as she glanced to the freshly plowed driveway beside the large brick home, though it stood darkened on that Christmas night, standing tall and cold, though it was obvious that it had the character and grace of a very loved home. She pulled slowly up the driveway, hearing the crunch of the frozen snow and ice beneath the tires, slowing as Richie glanced at the house. "We can go in the front door." He said as he nodded toward the house, his eyes finally made their way to the driver's side, though not looking up, they collided with her fingertips as they grazed the shifter between them, he watched the movement of her muscles in her hand as her thumb pressed the button on the shifter, sending it forward into park, she paused.

"Are you alright?" Harper asked, her eyes on his face as he continued to stare at her hand for a second, she watched as he turned toward the door, grabbing the handle.

"I'm fine." He shrugged as he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder, like a vice grip, sending him backwards into his seat. "Ow! Geez!" Richie exclaimed as he rubbed his shoulder, his eyes finally moving to hers as he gave her a dissatisfied scowl. "What is your problem?"

"I don't have a problem. What's your problem?" She asked as she raised her eyebrows, watching him rub his shoulder. "Don't be a baby. What is your problem? Why won't you look at me?"

"I am looking at you! I'm looking at you!" He exclaimed as he looked at her with wide eyes, proving his point.

"Just shut up and get out of the car." She mumbled as she turned and grabbed the handle, snapping her seatbelt off, she slid from the car and glared at Richie as he called her name apologetically. She slammed the door and turned sharply, walking around the car.

Richie climbed from the car and slammed his door, glancing to Harper as she stomped around the front of the car. "Hey! Hey, I'm just thinking." Richie said as he reached his hand out for her. "I'm just thinking. Please don't get mad at me." He said as he beckoned her with his fingertips. "Come here." He said as he nodded his head toward the house and held his hand out. "Come on." He said, a small smile slipping on his lips as he watched her tip her head back slightly, roll her eyes back as if she were giving up, she stepped forward and took his hand. "I promise. I was just thinking." He said as he gave her a tender smile, feeling the weight of her head as she rested it on his shoulder. "Now this, this is my house." He said as he walked with her down the sidewalk. She looked up at the old brick home, the white paint around the porch peeling slightly, the flower boxes in the windows covered in snow. She imagined that this house had to be a beautiful sight in the spring and fall, flowers adorning the boxes, the rose bushes that were poking out of the snowy drifts were probably filled with colorful roses, and the swinging bench on the front porch was probably a place of solitude and silence, a place where the family gathered to watch fireworks on the fourth of July, or a sandwich on a Saturday afternoon. Harper walked with Richie up the slick wooden steps, his grip becoming tighter as he ensured that she wouldn't slip on the stairs, his eyes passed to her as she looked up at him, smiling tenderly as they approached the door.

"It's a beautiful house." Harper said softly, feeling some of the tension that Richie was building up drain from him.

"Thank you." He said as he pulled out his keys and smiled. He put the key in the lock and glanced to Harper one more time before smiling and turning it, pushing the door open with his arm as he walked in backwards.

* * *

 _"MOOOOOMMMM!" Ten-year-old Richie exclaimed as he ran through the house as quickly as he could, running into the kitchen he didn't find her, he rounded the table and back out into the living room. "MOM!" He exclaimed as he ran up the stairs, letting his hand smack against the wall as he ran as quickly as he could. "Mom! Mom! Mom! Mom!" He shouted as he slid to a stop in front of his parent's room._

 _"No, Derek. Absolutely not." Meredith argued as she stood, her hands across her chest as she stood red faced and angry._

 _"Meredith. It's a vacation. It's not taking a year off, it's a vacation."_

 _"No, Derek. I have a lot of stuff going on at the hospital. I don't have time for a vacation." She argued._

 _"We need a vacation, Meredith. You need one, I need one. The kids haven't been out of the city in a while. They need some grass or some dirt to play in. I will plan it, and we'll do it, what do you say?" Derek said as he glanced to the doorway to see Richie standing there. "Hey."_

 _"Hey, Dad." Richie grinned. "We're going on a vacation?" He asked, his eyes widening as he hopped up and down. "Yeah!"_

 _"See. He thinks it's a great idea."_

 _"Yeah, well he's not paying the bills!" Meredith exclaimed angrily as she turned and stomped past Derek and Richie and walked angrily down the stairs._

 _Derek sighed as he shook his head, he ruffled his son's hair and watched Richie smirk at him as Derek turned to walk out of the room. He paused in the doorway and glanced to Richie. "What were you looking for your mom for?"_

 _"I was going to tell her that Greyson got a detention and that he needed to get picked up at school at five." Richie shrugged._

 _"Again?" Derek asked with his eyebrows raised as Richie nodded._

 _"I think he pushed someone off their chair at lunch or something. I dunno." Richie shrugged as he watched Derek roll his eyes and turn, walking out of the room._

* * *

Richie backed into the house, turning to switch the light on the porch, illuminating Harper as she stepped inside, looking around as Richie walked toward the living room, as they both kicked off their shoes. "This is the hallway." He shrugged. "Living room, kitchen and dining room down the hallway. Bedrooms upstairs, bathrooms are pretty self explanatory, they're the rooms with the toilets in them. First door is Grey's old room, second is the spare room. Third is mine, Mariellis' room has the pink flowers painted on it, and my parents room is across the hallway." Richie shrugged as he turned around, watching as Harper's attention fell onto the living room, being lit by the hall light, she could immediately see the Christmas tree looming in the room, the lack of lighting giving it an ominous stance in the large family room area.

Richie watched Harper as she stepped into the family room, her eyes on the tree as she stepped forward to it without saying a word, noting to herself the enormity of the tree compared to her small size. He reached to his side, without saying a word and flipped the switch on the wall, and smiled at the barely audible gasp of Harper as the tree illuminated the room brightly, sending sparkles of light throughout the room and Harper's jaw open just slightly as she stared in awe at the brightly colored spruce before her, the decorations sparkling from its branches, the star at the top staring down on them as if it were guarding them from any evil or sadness that may have entered the room, warding it off with its spectacular blues, reds, yellows and greens that danced over every inch of the room.

"You know," Richie said as he watched her stare at the tree, her attention having been captured completely by its beauty. He knew she was listening, and he smiled at her revelry. "When I as a kid, the trees that my father found always looked huge to me. Standing in that window, looming over us all." He smiled as he stepped to her side, staring up at the star with her. "But every single year, the trees only seemed to get larger, never smaller. This room always seemed brighter, the decorations always seemed to get more colorful. Christmas is my parent's favorite holiday." Richie said as he turned his head to face Harper as she continued to be enraptured by the tree. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" He asked with a tender smile, watching her eyes glance to him, and back to the tree.

"There are no words." She was able to whisper. Her statements and thoughts having been swept away by the beauty of the decorations. The love that was put into the room, the sweet, delicate arrangement of each and every ornament.

"Hey." He said as he took her hand in his, and it took a second to pull her out of her amazement before she grasped his hand back. Richie took a small step to his side, carefully trying to crouch down as he tugged her arm, she looked down and saw that he was trying to get her to sit down beside him under the tree. She smiled and let him pull her tenderly down onto the rug, the smell of spruce invading her nostrils as her nose came closer to the tree, and she pushed her body back sitting down with her legs crossed as she stared at the tree. She glanced to her side, and Richie was lying on his back staring up at the tree. "This tree is never lit up on Christmas night." He said as he glanced to Harper with a smirk.

"Why not?" She asked, tilting her head in confusion as she watched Richie smile and stare into the tree.

"We're never here on Christmas night." Richie replied. "We're always at my grandmother's house." he said softly. "That's where we're supposed to be now." He whispered, sighing softly.

"So you and your family and all of those people in that waiting room, they all get together, every year and stay at your grandmother's house?" Harper asked as she gave Richie a confused glance.

"Every single one of us." Richie nodded.

"Does your grandmother own a mansion?" She asked as she listened to Richie's laugh.

"No!" He chuckled. "We just pack in like sardines, and when I was little, Santa used to come. It was great. My grandmother's Christmas tree is bigger than this one." Richie said as he started to sit up, he watched Harper turn, her hand raised to push against his chest as she gently pushed him back on the rug. "What do you think you're doing?" He asked, watching the mischief in her eyes as she leaned across him, pressing her arm into his chest as she moved up slightly so that she was nose to nose with him.

"I'm listening." She said as she gave him a tender smile, watching a shy smile move over his lips. "Tell me what you love about Christmas." She whispered.

"What I love about Christmas?" He said as he watched her nod her head, smiling tenderly at him as he turned his eyes to face to the tree, his eyes landing on the star at the top.

* * *

 _"I want to put the star up on top, Daddy! I want to!" Mariellis bounced around her father as Derek continued to try to get the tree straightened. He glanced to Meredith as she stood across the room. "How does it look?"_

 _"Still a little crooked." She said, moving her hand to the right a little as she scrutinized the placement of the tree._

 _"Crooked?" He asked as he moved the tree slightly to the right._

 _"Other way." Meredith said as she tilted her head again._

 _"Stop tilting your head!" He laughed._

 _"You stop tipping the tree!" Meredith laughed._

 _"Daddy, I think Mommy is right." Richie said as he stood beside Meredith and tilted his head the same way Meredith was._

 _"No… I think it's just right." Greyson said from the other side of the room._

 _"That's because you're over there." Richie argued._

 _"I'm going with Greyson." Derek said as he let go of the tree._

 _"Derek! It's crooked!"_

 _"I want to put the star on top! I want to put the star on top! I want to put the star on top!" Mariellis bounced around beneath them as Derek looked down at her._

 _"It's not your turn to put the star on top, it's Greyson's turn." Derek said, watching the girl's smile drop._

 _"Yes!" Greyson exclaimed as he pumped his fist and cheered._

 _"Awwww!" Mariellis exclaimed as she flopped to the floor and pouted._

 _"Dad. It's still crooked." Richie said as he tilted his head in the same direction with Meredith._

 _"Grey?" Derek said as he nodded toward Meredith and Richie. Greyson giggled as he ran over toward his mother, tugging her right arm._

 _"What are you?" She said as she straightened her head as Greyson pointed._

 _"See? Perfect, mommy!" He said as Meredith gave Derek a humored look._

 _"I guess it's alright." Meredith said as she shrugged and laughed._

 _"Alright? Just alright?" Derek said as he held the tree in its spot. "Get her!" He exclaimed as Mariellis jumped up from the floor and Grey and Richie turned to start tickling Meredith as she turned and started to run around the couch._

 _"Call them off! Call them off!" Meredith exclaimed with a giggle as the tickling fingers of her kids came at her as she tipped over backwards on the couch, laughing loudly as they all began to laugh and tickle her._

 _"Alright, alright. No more tickling." Derek said as he appeared over Meredith as the kids all giggled and caught their breath as Derek leaned down. "Tree is up." He said with a smirk as he kissed her tenderly on the lips._

 _"Crooked tree is up." She giggled as she squealed, as all four of them began to tickle her._

* * *

"So your house was always filled with laughter, huh? Around the holidays?" Harper asked as she looked up at Richie, his eyes moving to hers as he nodded.

"Always." He said as he nodded. "Decorations were always the biggest hassle, but my dad was always able to take care of it. He had a system. Each one of us would be at a different level of the tree. Mari always had the lower part, Grey the middle, and me and mom would do the top. All of the decorations on the tree are gifts. From us, or from my grandmothers. Its kind of a tradition, to give Christmas ornaments as a gift from one another."

"So you've filled the tree up, over the years?"

"That's why my grandmother's tree is the largest. It takes five people to get it up and decorated. And you know the best part of putting the tree, don't you?"

"What is it?" Harper whispered as she looked up at him and smiled, watching his focus go back to the tree.

"That." He said, pointing to the top of the tree. "That right there, that's the prize." He said as he watched the star shining down on him. "When I was little, near Christmas time I used to come downstairs in the middle of the night and just stare at that star. It didn't matter to me whose turn it was to put it on top. It was just true, that the Christmas spirit didn't enter the house until that star was on top of that tree. My mother always smiled a little more. My father always seemed a little happier." Richie sighed. "Not that things were dismal around here. I mean, this house was always filled with love, but all of the stress seemed to be sucked out of the house when that tree is up." He said softly.

"When do you take the tree down, usually?" Harper asked, watching Richie chuckle a little.

"When my mother gets tired of vacuuming the needles from the floor!" He laughed, feeling her head on his chest as she giggled against him as they lie beneath the Christmas tree. They then slipped into a peaceful silence, as Harper lay with her head against Richie's chest, his eyes staring into the Christmas tree, as if the power and spirit of Christmas would be released at any moment and rescue him from his internal battle. Harper looked up at him and watched him carefully, wondering to herself why she felt so connected to Richie, to his family, to the situation. She wondered to herself why she felt so compelled to care for this stranger, to nurture him, hold him, be close to him, kiss him. She had never felt this way about anyone before, and especially not this quickly. She wished she had some kind of answer, some kind of sign or indication that the feelings she was experiencing were real.

"You're staring at me." Richie whispered as he continued to look up at the star.

"I am not staring at you." She mumbled as she moved her head so that he couldn't see her eyes.

"You perplex me." Richie said as he watched her head move quickly, her eyes looking into his now.

"What is that supposed to mean?" She asked almost stubbornly as she gave him a glare.

"See?" He said as he shook his head and leaned it back, resting it on the rug. "You have so many layers." He said as he attempted to not sound rude, but she sat up a little, pushing his chest as she glared at him.

"What are you saying? That you think I have multiple personalities or something?" She asked with an irritated glare.

He thought for a moment to pull her back down, maybe kiss her, maybe hold her and just tell her not to worry, but the fire in her eyes intrigued him, the mistrust was evident and he couldn't help but prod just a little more. When it all came down to it, they just didn't know one another, and this was just another step to take in that process. "Multiple Personalities, no." He said with a tilt of his head and a faux scrutinizing look. "Bipolar, most likely." He nodded as he watched her jaw drop, her hand following suit as she smacked his chest.

"Bipolar!?" She exclaimed as she started to back away from him. "Bipolar?"

"Where are you going?" He laughed as he watched her cross her arms over her chest and pull her knees up, several feet from him.

"I'm sitting over here." She said stubbornly as she gave him a glare. He saw the glare, but he could also see the small smirk on her lips.

"All the way over there?"

"Yes." She said as she turned her eyes toward the tree again. She was silent as she stared at the tree, Out of the corner of her eye she could see Richie watching her. She remained silent for a long while, watching his head tilt slightly as he also didn't say a word. She sighed a slow sigh, and after several minutes, began to chew her lower lip nervously. Richie watched as her comfort level plummeted. He could almost see the the fear and need to run in her eyes. "I should, I shouldn't be here, Richard." She said suddenly as she started to stand up.

"What do you mean you shouldn't be here?" He asked as he started to stand up as well. "Harper?"

"No. No, I shouldn't. I need to go back home. I need to. I need to go back home." She said as she started to walk toward the door.

"Harper, where are you going?" Richie asked as he followed her toward the door. "Where are you going?"

"Home. I shouldn't have done this." She said, shaking her head. "I can't date you, Richie. You're just a kid. You're just a kid, and i"m going to be finishing up medical school, and I have my internship, and you're going to have this surgery. You're going to be sick for a while, and I really... I mean, I really don't even know you very well." She said, shaking her head as she watched his eyes.

"I am not just a kid!" He exclaimed as he reached for her hand. "Come on, Harper. Don't leave me here all by myself. Please?"

"You're not all by yourself. You have a lot of family, a lot of family, and I'm just… I'm not your family, I'm not anything. I'm the reason you got into the car accident in the first place. I'm the reason Greyson's arm is broken and your car is trashed. Richard, this isn't going to work. It's a mistake."

"It didn't even get started yet! How can it not work?" He asked as he watched her put her shoes on. "Harper, please? Please don't go."

"Richard, it's not going to work out. I don't live here, I don't go to school here. We're just kidding ourselves if we think that this is going to go anywhere. You're a kid, Richie, just a kid… a nice kid…"

"I'm not a kid! Stop saying that!" He exclaimed angrily.

"Can you drink legally, Richard?" She asked as she reached for the doorknob, feeling Richie's hand cover hers with his own.

"No." He said, watching her shake her head.

"It's not going to work, Richard. It's better if we just stop it before it starts." She said as she shook her head. They stood staring at one another for a long moment, their eyes challenging one another. He knew that she was right, but wasn't ready to let go, and she didn't know what was right, but she knew she had to go. "I'm sorry." She whispered as she leaned forward and reached her hand to his cheek, leaning up, she kissed his lips tenderly. "I'm sorry." She said as she felt his hand slip from hers as he stared at her and she opened the front door.

"What if I die?" He said abruptly, his true thoughts shining through in a half whispered thought.

Harper turned as she stepped out onto the porch, pretending that she didn't hear his last four words. "Goodnight, Richard." She whispered. "I'm sorry." She said as she turned and walked off the porch quickly, making her way toward the car.

* * *

 _"Meredith, one more chance." Derek said as he walked into the bedroom and watched Meredith looking for her scrub pants and shirt._

 _"Derek, no. I'm not going on vacation. There is too much to do, and I don't have time to be running around with you and the kids when all I'm going to be doing is thinking about the hospital." She said as she looked through a basket of clothes. "Where are all of my scrubs…"_

 _"I did a load of laundry. They're in the dryer." Derek replied. "Meri, you just got home from a shift at the hospital. Your mother gave you the week off."_

 _"I didn't ask for a week off!" She exclaimed, watching the tension in his face as she raised her hand to her forehead. "I didn't ask for a week off, Derek." She said, trying to talk softly so the kids wouldn't hear._

 _"Well, we're leaving, Meredith."_

 _"Fine! Go!" She said as she stomped past him._

 _"I'm serious, Meri. Our bags are packed and the reservations have already been made." He said as she turned around and glared at him._

 _"Then get the hell out!" She exclaimed as she pointed toward the hallway as Derek tilted his head. "Go! Just take them, and go!"_

 _"Meri, this isn't healthy."_

 _"What isn't healthy, Derek? What isn't healthy? Is it me? Trying to provide for our family? "Trying not to get behind in my work so that I can take a nap now and then? Is it really me, Derek? Or is it you?"_

 _"Meredith." Derek said softly._

 _"You look at me with those woeful stares like you think I'm some sort of lonely puppy dog that needs to be led around to know what's good for my family. I love my job, Derek. I love it. I love it and there's nothing that you can do about it, so stop trying to change me. Stop trying to get me to work less, and just let me spend time doing what I love!" She shouted, her words stabbing Derek in the heart as she hardly even realized what she had said._

 _"Fine then." Derek said as he cleared his throat. "I told you where we were going for vacation. You will know where to find us. Do you at least remember that?"_

 _"No."_

 _"And why is that?"_

 _"Because I never had any intention on going, Derek!" She growled._

 _"That's right." Derek said as he shook his head. "And because of that, I'm taking the kids, and I'm going to spend time with them because that is what 'I' love to do!" He said, his face contorting into an angry sneer. "I'm going to take a page out of YOUR history and I'm running away Meredith. Because I can't bear to see you go through this!" He said shaking his head. "I can't bear to see you waste away in a job that takes you away from three of the most precious beings that ever lived. I'd tell you to take this time alone that you have and think about that but the amount of time that you've spent with us for the past six months you won't even know we're gone!" He said angrily as he turned sharply and stomped down the stairs, calling for the kids to get into the car as he left Meredith standing alone in the doorway of their bedroom._

* * *

Richie stood in the doorway, the echo of the door on the car slamming could be heard as the car started up. He stepped out onto the porch, and walked to the first step, crossing his arms over his chest in an attempt to remain warm, and he tried not to shiver as he watched her slowly back the car up. He could feel the tears welling up in his eyes, the fear attacking his belly, and the sadness starting to take over his soul. He felt so alone at that moment standing on that porch, and as if that scene in itself wasn't enough to push him over the edge, the tender white snowflakes falling from the sky, melting on his skin just reminded him of how absolutely precious every second we have actually is, because a snowflake in its simplest form, crystals of water and ice placed delicately together only to disappear with the warmth of a surface, is just as delicate and special as his heart. Something snapped in Richie's brain, and the next thing he knew he was running down the sidewalk. His socks were soaking from the snow covered walk, and his toes stung with each step he took as he stepped into the slush of the plowed driveway. The car's headlights hit him and blinded him for a moment as he nearly slipped on the ice in the driveway, the car came to a halt and Richie reached for the handle of the door.

He stepped to the side of the door and without saying a word, he reached over her and shifted the car into park again. "Richard, what are you doing?" She asked as he pushed the button on her seatbelt and slowly pulled it off her as she protested. "Richard, I have to go. I have to go home!"

Richie looked up into her eyes and could see that she had been crying as well, tears rolling down her cheeks as she sniffled. "Stop being stubborn. Stop being so goddamned stubborn and stay!" He exclaimed. "Please. Please stay…" He sobbed.

"I can't." She sniffled as she shook her head. "I can't, Richie."

"Why can't you? Why can't you stay here with me? Give me a good reason, an actual reason, Harper. Give me a good goddamned reason!" Richie exclaimed as he reached over and grabbed her keys from the ignition and palmed them. "Give me a good reason." He said, his voice lowering as he stared into her eyes, backing out of the car as he watched her looking into his eyes.

"I…" She whimpered as she stared at him.

"You came all the way here to Boston with me, and now you want to bail? Why?" Richie said as he stared into her eyes, waiting for her to respond.

* * *

 _"What are you doing here, Meredith?" Ellis said as she noticed Meredith standing in front of the surgery board._

 _"I'm working." She said as she continued to stare at the board, reaching her hand out to grab the marker, she found her mother's hand on hers._

 _"No, you're not working. You are on vacation." She said as Meredith turned her head and glared at her._

 _"I'm not on vacation. Derek is on vacation. He took the kids, and he left, and good riddance. He's been driving me crazy trying to get me to go on a vacation. Is he crazy? He knows that we don't have time for that silliness. There's no time for it." Meredith said as she pulled her hand back sharply._

 _"There's time for it." Ellis said abruptly. "No surgeries, Meredith. You're not on call, and you're not working this week, absolutely no exceptions."_

 _"Mother!" Meredith growled._

 _"Maybe you should be saying that to yourself, Meredith." Ellis glared at her daughter as she shook her head._

 _"What is that supposed to mean?" Meredith snapped as she crossed her arms over her chest._

 _"Meredith, where are your children?" Ellis asked as she tilted her head._

 _"They're with Derek." Meredith growled._

 _"Do you know where Derek is with them?"_

 _"No."_

 _"Do you care?"_

 _Meredith paused. "Of course I care." She said as she swallowed. "Of course I care. What kind of question is that?"_

 _"Do you know that Derek didn't just take a week off for vacation, Meredith?"_

 _"He said that he was."_

 _"No, Meredith." Ellis said sternly as she looked into her daughter's eyes. "He took three weeks off, Meredith. He took three weeks."_

 _"No he didn't. What do you…?"_

 _"Yes…" Ellis said. "He took three weeks off and he only requested one with you."_

 _"I… I…"_

 _"Do you know why he would do that, Meredith?" Ellis asked, watching the tears in Meredith's eyes._

 _"No." Meredith whispered._

 _Ellis stared into her daughter's eyes sternly, the conversation that she had with Derek was still fresh in her mind. His reasoning and thoughts on Meredith's overworking herself, and his feelings on the subject were raw and not unfamiliar territory for Ellis. She herself had fallen into the trap that her daughter was falling into, and Ellis didn't want to see it, she didn't want her grandchildren to witness it, and she didn't want Derek to deal with it. She and Derek had a very long talk about how to handle it, and there was only one more step to take, and that was for Meredith to see for herself what she was doing._

 _"Meredith?" Ellis whispered._

 _"No." Meredith shook her head. "No!" She exclaimed angrily at her mother. "Stop! Stop coddling me and stop treating me like I can't make my own decisions! He's trying to control you too! I am not a goddamned workaholic! I just love my job! Is that so wrong? Is there something so wrong with loving what I do? Is there something wrong with repairing broken things? Is there something wrong with with holding someone's hand and taking control of a situation and being the hero? Is there something wrong with being the best surgeon I can be? Because if there is something out there that is better than having the ability to save a life, I'd like to hear it." She said as she shook her head angrily at her mother._

 _The next words out of Ellis' mouth were not going to be in anger, though she was more than ready to scream angrily at her daughter for her misjudgment. She was more than angry for what her daughter had done to Derek, to their children, to their relationship. She was more than willing to lay it all out on the line for Meredith, but when she opened her mouth to speak, nothing came out. Instead, she watched the anger in Meredith's face drain, the red hue of her cheeks quickly turned pale as her angry eyes turned to devastation. "Meredith?" Ellis whispered._

 _"Oh my God." She whimpered as she covered her mouth with her hand._

 _"Meredith, are you alright?" Ellis asked as she watched her daughter shake her head as she held her hand out._

 _"I have to go." She choked. "I have to go, I have to go." She said as she turned and quickly ran down the hallway away from Ellis, as she took a slow, deep breath and watched her disappear down the hallway and out of sight._

* * *

"Harper?" Richie said as he leaned close to her, holding the side of the car as he watched her look into his eyes with a pitiful stare. "Please…" He whispered.

"Richard, you shouldn't trust me."

"Are you a thief?"

"No."

"Are you an axe murderer?" He cringed.

"No."

"Are you diseased in any way?"

"No!" She said, letting out a half laugh.

"Do you like hot cocoa?" He whispered.

"Yes?" She said, tilting her head.

"What about me?"

"I don't know if you like hot cocoa." She sniffled as she watched him smirk. She giggled a little at the look on his face.

"You know what I meant. Do you like me, Harper?" He whispered.

"I like you."

"Then give me one reason why I shouldn't pull you out of the car right now, and carry you into the house with me."

"You'll embarrass your parents in front of your neighbors?" She asked with a questioning glance.

"Yes… yes, carrying you into the house, may not be a good option, but right now, frozen toes and all I'm ready to risk it." He said holding his hand out to her. "Please?" He said softly. "Please don't run away from me anymore."

"I'm sorry." She whimpered as she took his hand.

"I'm sorry too." He said softly as he helped her from the car, he took a step back and let her close the door.

She looked down at his socked feet and her jaw dropped. "Jesus, Richie! Your feet! You're going to get frostbite!" She said as she looked down at his soaked socked feet.

"You didn't give me time to put my shoes on!" He said as she started to pull him toward the house.

"No excuse, no excuse!" She exclaimed as she pulled him up the steps of the porch and toward the door, but before they could let themselves inside, her lips were on his, and their hands were running through one another's hair as they began a passionate kiss that had the ability to warm Richie's toes.

* * *

 _Meredith pulled into the driveway quickly, she left the car running as she ran, unlocked the door and pushed into the house. "Derek?" She called, knowing he wouldn't be home, but hoping among hope that maybe he had forgotten something, or decided not to go. "Derek!?" She exclaimed as she started running through the house toward the kitchen. "Derek!" She exclaimed as tears started to fall down her face. "Richie!" She said as she started to sob. "Greyson! Mari?" She called as she ran around the table and out the door to the living room. "Derek!" She exclaimed, tears rolling down her cheeks as she started to climb the stairs, a mark on the wall grabbing her attention as she stopped halfway up the stairs. She stopped and stared at the mark, the obvious remnants of a dirty hand that had been smacked against the wall when a much smaller person had been climbing the stairs._

 _She gasped as she noticed that there wasn't just one handprint marking the wall, but hundreds of unnoticed markings that were only visible in the soft lighting against the off white wall when the sunlight shone through the curtains at this time of day. Hundreds of handprints, big, small, tiny handprints covering the wall. Meredith thought for a moment she was imagining it, her mind playing tricks on her as she suddenly remembered her task, though her eyes wouldn't move from the wall. She reached her hand out, placing it over the small hand print that had caught her eye and she could see in her mind, her son running up those stairs, hear the gentle smacking of his hand against the wall as he clomped, ran, walked, snuck, or crawled up the stairs. She could imagine her daughter, her first steps, her first trip up the stairs, holding tightly to her father's hand while she took one step at a time, one step at a time up those wooden stairs, her left hand slapping against the wall with each step as she steadied herself, her father's voice guiding her along. She could hear Derek's voice saying her name, so softly, delicately as she suddenly began to cry harder, dropping to her knees on the stairs, she pushed her face against the wall and sobbed against it. She sobbed until she felt the arms of someone around her, pulling her against them._

 _She sobbed until she felt tender kisses against her neck, against her cheek. "Meri." Derek's voice broke through her barrier as he held her, rocked her, kissed her. "Oh, Meri, Meri quite contrary." He whispered with a kiss as he felt her breaking down in his arms._

 _"Where… Where are my babies?" Meredith whimpered as she reached her hand for the wall, resting it against the paint as she continued to cry._

 _"They're with my sister." He whispered. "They're with Nancy. Nancy is watching them…" He said softly as he kissed her tenderly._

 _"Don't leave…" She sobbed. "Please… Please don't ever leave…" She said as she gripped him tightly as he shifted around her._

 _"I'm not going anywhere, Meri." He whispered as very carefully, he scooped her into his arms. He pulled her against his chest, and as smoothly as he could, he lifted her into his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder, as he lovingly carried her upstairs to their bedroom._

* * *

It took only a moment for them to push the door open, their lips locked as their hands roamed over each other's body. He pushed the door closed with his foot, his soaking feet were squishing against the floor as his arms swallowed her up, as he cradled her body in his arms and kissed her tenderly, sweetly, and then more hungrily.

"Oh…" She moaned against his mouth as she grazed his lip with her teeth, feeling him start at the sharp pain.

"It's okay." He mumbled against her as she felt a sudden urgency in her belly, in her heart. "Oh, Harper…" He moaned against her mouth, his lips moving to her cheek, her chin, her neck, her collarbone.

"Comfortable…" She mumbled against him. "We need…"

"A bed?" He asked as he raised his eyebrows as she nearly laughed at the look on his face, flushed and almost confused.

"Something like that…" She laughed as she stared at his lips, and after a moment of staring, she devoured them hungrily. "Oh god, Richie…" She groaned as he kissed her neck, and suddenly let out a squeal as he lifted her into his arms.

"Are you alright?" He asked as he watched her lustful stare as she looked into his eyes and nodded.

"I'm alright." He said as he swallowed hard, "I am more than alright…" He said with a breathless smile while he turned with her in his arms, and ascended the stairs quickly as she kissed him hungrily on his neck the entire way to the bedroom.

He reached the top of the stairs and Harper threw her head back as she laughed suddenly, recognizing the irrational and exhausted actions they were taking. "What are we doing?" She laughed as Richie smirked at her and shook his head. "We... We should really stop." She said, watching his blue eyes sparkle at her. "Where are we?"

"I'm showing you the spare bedroom." He shrugged as he carefully lifted her to the ground, though he kept his arm on her back for a moment as he slid his hand down into hers.

"You're being very forward, Richard." She said with a giggle as she watched his cheeks turn red, she moved around and gripped his shoulders as she looked into his eyes.

"It's night time." He said as he shrugged, laughing nervously. "I thought you wanted to know where you'd be sleeping tonight." He said as he leaned his head forward and rested it on her forehead. "You know, if you wanted to sleep tonight." He said, wiggling his eyebrows with a nervous chuckle.

"Richie!" She laughed as she smacked him lightly, turning around in his arms, they faced the bedroom. She felt his body stiffen slightly against her as he reached past her and turned the doorknob, he pushed the door open and they stood staring into the darkened bedroom.

"Light is on the left side." He said as he felt the coolness of her stepping forward into the room, she looked to the left and flipped the switch on the wall, illuminating the room. She turned and looked at him in the doorway. "You're going to make me sleep in this strange room, in this strange house, all by myself?" She asked as she tilted her head at Richie as he smiled at her.

"Do you really think it'd be appropriate for me to take advantage of you after I've only known you for two days?" Richie asked as he watched her nod her head, leaning slightly on the doorway. "Besides, you were just on your way down the driveway a minute ago with, might I add, some of the most ridiculous excuses… and now you're asking me to stay with you?"

"So I don't run away?" She asked, tilting her head as she glanced behind Richie and then into his eyes, watching as he smiled at her.

"Don't look at me like that." He said as he watched her eyes move to his lips and back to his eyes again.

"Like what?" She asked with a slight giggle, she watched him smile at her nervously.

"Like you want to eat me alive." He replied as she smiled slyly at him. "You're a dangerous woman." He replied as he smiled. He leaned forward tenderly and kissed her nose.

"You don't have to stay with me." She said as she leaned into him, looking into his eyes. "You look exhausted." She said, touching his cheek.

"I am pretty tired." He nodded.

"I'm…" She said as she pointed toward the stairs and slowly walked around him. "I'm going to get my bag out of the car. I forgot it…" She said softly as Richie watched her as she turned on the top of the stairs. "What?" She asked as she watched him watch after her, the warmth in his eyes quickly draining to exhaustion..

"Nothing." He said with a sad smile. "Go get your bag." He shrugged.

"Okay." She said as she gave him a confused look for a second and took a step or two down the stairs, glancing back to Richie as he gave her another sad smile. "What?" She said as she raised her eyebrows.

"Nothing." Richie shrugged as he brushed his hands, for her to go down the stairs.

She turned and walked down the stairs the rest of the way, and Richie smirked when he heard the front door open and close. He turned toward his room, a sly smile on his face as he walked toward his old bedroom. He opened the door, switched on the lights. His bed sit across the room. The pillow was atop the bed, beckoning him nearer as he barely even took a look around the room. He took four steps and tipped, flopping his body down hard across the mattress, feeling it squeak and groan beneath him, closing his eyes, he was sleeping in seconds.

* * *

Harper walked across the porch, nearly slipping on the slick step of the porch, she grabbed hold of the railing as she caught her footing. She reached into her pocket for her keys, smirking as she realized that Richie still had them. She realized that was why he was smiling at her as she disappeared down the stairs. She walked to the car and opened the back door, reaching in to grab her backpack with the clothes she was able to shove into it, she pulled it from the car and closed the door, looking up at the house, she watched a light turn on and smiled when her eyes moved down to the window in the front of the house, where the lights of the Christmas tree were now reflecting out into the snow.

She swung her bag onto her back and walked back toward the house, carefully walking up the steps to the porch, she stepped inside and pulled her shoes off as she closed the door and locked it. She glanced over at the Christmas tree, standing beautifully in the room beside her, and she decided that it would be fine to leave it on, it was far too beautiful to turn it off just yet. She walked slowly up the stairs, listening for Richie moving around, only to find the spare room still open, the light on, and the next door down was wide open with the light on.

Harper walked down the hallway slowly, her socked feet making barely a sound as she stepped over the wooden floor. She passed the spare room door, glancing in for a second as she continued down to the next door. She stepped up to the doorway, her hand resting delicately on the doorframe as she leaned her head on it and looked inside. Straight into the room, lying sideways across the double bed was Richie. His legs dangled awkwardly over the edge, his wet socked feet dripping slightly on the floor as he slept peacefully against the blankets.

Harper shook her head and smiled at the exhausted man lying on the bed, and set her bag to the floor. She could feel a slight sadness slipping into her heart as she thought of his situation. He was a young, handsome, smart man facing one of the hardest situations of his entire life. His family hanging in the balance, his brother's life was almost literally a heartbeat away from disappearing, and he was absolutely exhausted. She turned around and walked toward the spare room. She reached for the bed and pulled the comforter covering the bed from its carefully tucked position, and she pulled it into her arms as she made her way back to Richie's room.

She stepped into the room and immediately looked around, smiling at the desk that sit in the corner, a large board with pictures and notes posted to it made her smile, recognizing a picture of him and his brother, and a picture of his grandmother during surgery, a picture of his mother and father laughing about something as his father held her tightly. She looked around at the carefully cleaned room, that had obviously been vacated of most of Richie's belongings when he had gone to school, but still held that sense that a little boy had grown up within the walls of that room. She walked to the desk and turned on the small desk lamp that was sitting on its surface, and then moved swiftly to the door, where she closed it tightly, switching off main light in the room, she pulled the comforter in her arms closer to her as she approached the bed.

She stood over his sleeping body for a moment, watching him sleep soundly as he lie motionless, his body rising and falling with each breath, she turned her head when the unfamiliar sound of the heat turning on in the old house made her jump, the surprise fading as she felt the heat pumping through the vents, and she pressed her hand to her chest as she laughed at herself for reacting to the sound, wondering to herself if she had reacted that way because it was foreign, or because for a moment she thought she had been caught watching him.

Her eyes moved back to the sleeping man as his nose wiggled against the mattress, and she reached for his feet as she dipped her fingers beneath the top of his sock, waiting for him to move at her touch, and pleased when he didn't. She very slowly peeled the wet sock from his foot, tossing it beside the dresser as she reached for his other foot, she looked down to see in the dim light of the desk lamp that he had a small smirk on his face. She began to pull his other sock from his foot and jumped when his foot touched her skin, it was cold and damp and she grabbed it with her hand as he smiled sleepily and looked up at her.

"Are you trying to take advantage of me?" He mumbled as she raised her eyebrows and shook her head with a scoff.

"Does it look like I'm taking advantage of you?"

"Maybe you don't know how to do it." He mumbled as he turned his head. "Maybe you have a foot fetish." He said into the mattress. "Maybe…"

"Maybe you had better stop talking before you get yourself into trouble." She said with a playful laugh as she tossed his other sock across the room.

"Maybe…" He mumbled as he felt the comforter being draped over him carefully. "Mmm…" He mumbled. "Are you tucking me in?" He mumbled as he felt her hand beside him as she leaned over him to make sure he was completely covered.

"I'm tucking you in." She said as she leaned down to kiss his forehead.

"You smell pretty." He whispered as he moved his hand to grab hers. "H?" He whispered.

"H?" She whispered.

"Yeah, that's my new name for you. Short and sweet, like you." He said as he gave her a sleepy smile. He thought that he'd get a scowl, but was instead greeted with a sweet smile. "You like it." He said as he watched her giggle and shake her head.

"You are so tired." She giggled.

"I am." He mumbled.

"Was there something you wanted to ask me?" She whispered, tipping her head as she watched him look at her sleepily.

"I…um… I don't have my favorite teddy bear." He muttered.

"Your favorite teddy bear?"

"Yeah." He said as he let his lip poke out as he watched her smile down at him.

"You have a teddy bear?" She giggled.

"No." He mumbled. "I don't have a favorite teddy bear."

"You're confusing me." She laughed.

"Sleep with me, please?" He asked as he rolled to his side and pushed himself farther onto the bed, holding the blanket up. "Just let me hold you, please?" He whispered. "I'm scared."

"You're scared?" She whispered as she crouched by the bed as he nodded his head.

"Please?" He whimpered as he held the comforter up.

"Do you want to talk?" She whispered, sitting on the bed as she pulled her feet up.

"No." He whispered. "Not right now." He said as he felt her body lie beside him, pushing its way into his.

"Are you alright?" She whispered as she felt his arm and the blanket cover her tenderly as his face nuzzled hers softly.

"No." He whispered. "No, I'm not alright."

"Just hold me, then." She mumbled against him as she felt his grip tighten around her as he snuggled her, knowing that the fact that he had admitted that he wasn't alright, was a very strong indication, that he was more than just 'not alright'. She felt a teardrop fall to her face from his, and a muffled sniffle as he held her, and she closed her eyes and rubbed his hand tenderly as he held her against him. "Rich…" She whispered, as she felt his body slowly relaxing. "Just hold me. I'm right here. I'm not going to let anything bad happen." She whispered as she let herself relax in his arms, her eyes closing as she fell asleep with his tender breathing in her ear.

* * *

The sound was shrill and insistent, and when Harper opened her eyes, she couldn't quite remember where she was. She was staring across at the red lettering of a clock, watching as the 3:45 turned to 3:46, as she suddenly realized that the loud noise that had roused her from her sleep, was the phone. She tried to sit up, finding a strong arm wrapped around her tightly, trapping her beneath its weight, and when she tried to roll from his grip, she only felt herself being pulled in closer.

"Rich." She whispered as she turned her head. "Richie, the phone is ringing." She whispered.

"Mmm…" He grumbled.

"Richie, the phone."

"Its probably just someone looking for my dad." He mumbled incoherently as he pushed his face into her shoulder, entwining his fingers in hers.

"Rich, it probably is your dad. It's almost four in the morning." She said back, tipping her head so that she could see the top of his head, and when he didn't move or say anything, she huffed as she reached forward, feeling him hold her tighter. "Richie, what are you doing?"

"Don't answer it." He mumbled.

"I have to answer it!" She replied.

"Don't answer it. Please, please don't answer it." He said as he felt her pulling against him.

"If I don't answer the phone, we won't know. Your brother could be dying." She said as she reached her arm out, almost getting to the phone.

Just as her hand reached the handset, Richie reached for it. "If you answer it, he could be dead already!" He choked out as he rolled onto his back defeated, slamming his hand down on his face as he started to breathe heavily. Harper stared at the handset for a second, and pushed the button on it.

"Hello?" She said softly, swallowing hard as she glanced to Richie as he continued to breathe heavily.

"Harper?" Derek's voice sounded over the line nervously.

"Doctor Shepherd." Harper whispered.

"Can I talk with Richie please?" Derek said, his voice was panicky and full of anxiety and Harper looked over at Richie. His hands were covering his eyes, his elbows high in the air as he breathed heavily.

"Derek… he's…"

"Harper, I need him now. I need you two here now. We have to do the surgery tonight… today… whatever… whatever day it is… I don't even… I don't even know. Where is Richie?" Derek said as he finally was able to get a thought out. "I need Richie." He said clearly.

"Hang on a second." Harper said as she set the phone on the table next to the bed, she rolled over. "Richie?" She said as she tried to pull his hands off his eyes. "Richie, look at me, please?" Harper said as she watched his chest rise and fall rapidly. "Richie, please? Please look at me. Richie! Don't do this! Please!" She begged, as she started to panic. His breathing was rapid, and he groaned and whimpered. "Richard, Greyson is alive… we need to get to the hospital! That's your dad! We need to get to the hospital."

"I don't want to go to the hospital! I don't want to go to the hospital! I don't want to!" Richie grunted as he cried beneath his hands as he pushed the heels of his hands into his eyes harder and harder as he sobbed.

"Richard, stop this!" She said as she rolled over, pulling her leg over him as she straddled his body, she grabbed his elbows as she pulled his hands from his eyes. "Richard… please…"

"No… no… no… Don't! Don't make me do this… don't make me do this!" He said, as he squeezed his eyes tightly, feeling the weight of her body on his as she leaned down and pressed her forehead against his.

"Richard… stop…" Harper said softly, trying to have patience, trying to understand what he is going through. "Richard… stop crying… please…" She said softly. "Please… just look at me… please…" She said as she stared at his closed eyes. "Richie… please open your eyes…" She said, and she watched his eyes open, finding himself staring straight into her eyes. "You need to talk to your father, Richard."

"But… H… But…"

"No." She shook her head against his as she felt his breathing start to slow. "You can do this. You wanted to do this, Richard. You need to. This is all you."

"I can't do it now." He whispered.

"You can do it now. You can talk to your father." She whispered as she leaned to her side and pulled the phone onto the bed. She gripped it in her hand. "You can do this, Rich." She said softly as she stared into his eyes, lifting the phone to his ear, he breathed heavily as he listened in the line. "You can do it, Rich." She whispered.

"Dad?" Richie whimpered into the phone line.

"Richie…" Derek whispered, his voice sounded relieved to finally hear his voice. He had heard the entire exchange between Harper and Richie, and he was more than relieved to have his son on the phone with him.

"What's going on, Dad?" He whispered.

"Your brother is getting worse, Rich." He whispered. "We're going to have to do the surgery today. We need you here so we can go over some things, we need to get you prepped, Greyson prepped." Derek said softly as he listened to Richie's breathing as it slowed.

Richie held the phone to his ear as he talked with his father, as Harper continued to straddle him, her eyes filled with concern as she listened to Richie's side of the conversation. "He's getting worse?" He swallowed.

"The copper is starting to affect his other organs, Rich. We need to get this transplant done as soon as possible. Are you alright?" Derek asked.

"Are you?" Richie replied, his eyes flashing to Harper and then his focus was back on the phone.

"No." Derek replied. "Richie…" Derek whispered. "Listen. I need to be straight with you here, because this is all happening so fast and I'm exhausted, and you're exhausted, and I haven't slept in three days. But please know, we love you so much and I feel like we're using you and I don't want to feel that way. I don't want to feel that way, Richie." Derek said as he started to break down.

"Dad... Dad… don't… don't feel that way, Dad." Richie said as he started to panic, calming a little when Harper ran her fingers over his forehead delicately, catching his eyes as he replied. "You're not using me. You're not using me, Dad. I promise. I promise."

"I don't know what to do, Rich. Your mom is a nervous wreck, your grandmother is driving me crazy…" He said, his voice cracking a little. "Your brother is… he's so sick… and I don't know who to turn to in all of this. I don't know who to turn to! I love you boys so much… and this … this is breaking me, Richie. I need you here. I need you here, Richie." Derek sobbed into the line and listened.

"Where is Granny?"

"She's here." Derek replied. "Richie…" He said softly.

Richie's voice seemed to becoming stronger as he took a slow, deep breath. "Talk to her, Dad."

"Richard…"

"We'll be right there." He sniffled. "I love you, Dad. We'll be right there." He said quickly as he turned the phone off and tossed it off the bed. "We have to go." He said into Harper's eyes. "I have to get a few things, but we have to go." He said as Harper nodded and started to roll off him, but not before he grabbed her arm. "H?" He said softly as she tilted her head as she raised her eyebrows. "Thank you." He whispered. "Thank you for your strength.

"I'm just doing my job here." She said with a sweet smile as she pulled her arm from his grip softly. "Now get your butt off the bed, and let's get going." She said as she nodded toward the door, watching him climb out of the bed after her.

"I'm so tired." He grunted as she followed him out of the door.

"I know, I know." She said softly as she followed him down the hallway toward Greyson's old room. "But the sooner you get to lie down in the hospital, the sooner they'll put you under, and you'll get to sleep." She shrugged as he turned and gave her a half smirk.

"Oh, there's the bright side of it. I'm going to have my organs ripped out of me, but at least I get to sleep." He said with a half smile.

"Organ, one organ... and it's not going to get ripped out of you. It will be cut out of you… carefully… or else I'll freak out." She said with a satisfied smirk as he nodded and started to look through several drawers. "What are you looking for?"

"You'll freak out?" He asked as he looked up at her. "That's good to know. Harper Leigh Sullivan, future surgeon, freaks out in the operating room when boyfriend's lung is ripped from his body instead of having his liver cut from his body." Richie said with a very nervous laugh.

"First of all, never use my full name..." She said as she watched the smirk on his face. "And second of all... your lung isn't near your liver. Now, your gall bladder, they could probably accidentally rip that little sucker out." She said as Richie looked up at her. "Sorry, it was a joke."

"I know." He said as he grabbed something out of the drawer and turned around.

"Richie, what is that?" She asked as she followed him out of the room.

"Backup." He said as he held up a worn brown teddy bear in his hands where she could see it, before walking swiftly down the stairs to get ready to go.


End file.
